Digital eyes, no phones: How Mysuru police tracked gang involved in Rs 10 crore Hunsur heist to Bihar

Nearly 50 police personnel worked continuously for over two weeks to crack the Sky Gold and Diamond Jewellery Store heist case, officers said.

First known operation in Karnataka

Addressing a press conference on Monday, Mallikarjuna Baladandi, District Superintendent of Police, said the robbery was the handiwork of an inter-state gang, with more than 10 suspects believed to be involved. The five men were seen executing the robbery on CCTV footage, and the faces of three of the accused were clearly visible, which proved crucial to the investigation.

“Since the accused did not use mobile phones, digital tracking was not possible, which posed a major challenge. However, we relied on facial recognition technology and existing records to trace them to Bihar,” Baladandi said, while speaking to The Indian Express.

Describing the gang as “professional dacoits”, the SP said this was their first known operation in Karnataka. Before the Hunsur robbery, the gang reportedly conducted reconnaissance in the Kodagu, Hassan, and Mysuru districts, and finalised the Sky Gold and Diamond Jewellery Store on the Hunsur bypass road.

Five special police teams were constituted and dispatched to different locations. The teams, with assistance from the Bihar Police, arrested Rishikesh Kumar Singh (Chotu), a native of Delhi, and Pankaj Kumar, a resident of Bhagalpur district, Bihar, from Darbhanga in the state.

Accused met in jails

The police said Singh is involved in four murder and robbery cases, while Kumar has a criminal history spanning 27 cases. Investigators identified Kumar as the mastermind, who allegedly recruited young members into the gang and arranged logistics.

According to the police, the accused are believed to have met in various jails across the country, where they formed a network and later began operating as a professional gang. They said no residents from Mysuru district were involved in the Hunsur heist.

In the days leading up to the heist, the accused stayed in lodges at Hunsur and Periyapatna, allegedly using fake Aadhaar cards and mobile numbers belonging to unsuspecting individuals.

The focus of the investigation is now on recovering the remaining stolen valuables, and more arrests are underway in this case, the police said.

The robbery occurred on December 28, 2025, when five-armed men wearing masks and helmets stormed into Sky Gold and Diamond Jewellery showroom near the Hunsur bus stand around 1.30–2.04 pm.

Brandishing pistols, they threatened staff and looted around 450 gold ornaments weighing nearly 5 kg, valued at approximately ₹10 crore, before fleeing on motorcycles.

No injuries were reported, and the crime was captured on CCTV cameras.