Caretaker and husband arrested for gold theft in Bengaluru

A caretaker and her husband were arrested in Bengaluru for stealing gold from their employer's home. The couple is accused of taking valuables from the house of an engineer, Viswanath Akash. They allegedly stole the items in January while the caretaker was looking after Akash's grandmother. The caretaker, Sonia, 25, was hired through a private agency to help with the elderly woman. She started working on December 31, 2024, but stopped attending her job by January 11, raising suspicions. After checking, the family found that gold ornaments weighing 309 grams were missing. Police arrested Sonia on February 26. She confessed to the theft and admitted to pawning much of the stolen gold in locations in Andhra Pradesh and with local jewellers. Her husband, Pradeep, 26, who works as a cab driver, was also arrested for helping her dispose of the stolen items. Authorities recovered gold ornaments worth around Rs 20 lakh. Police noted that Sonia had been previously arrested for similar crimes but was re-hired by the same agency. A senior officer mentioned that they have sent a notice to the agency for an explanation regarding Sonia's repeated employment despite her criminal history.