123 Kolkata: The Gariahat Police arrested a former employee of a Gariahat-based popular boutique for allegedly stealing Rs 20 lakh and expensive sarees in a late-night burglary carried out last month. The accused entered the shop through an AC duct and disabled the CCTV cameras, suggesting insider knowledge of the premises.Rahul Seal, a resident of Ghutiari Sharif in South 24 Parganas, was apprehended at Narendrapur on Saturday night following a long police investigation. Officers recovered Rs 17 lakh of the stolen money after a dramatic stakeout at his girlfriend's uncle's residence in Kusumbakurpara.The investigation, led by OC Anjan Sen and crime officer Sergeant Abhishek Singh, revealed that Seal's employment was previously terminated from the boutique for theft. Sources said he returned multiple times to threaten employees."We saw a woman, later identified as Kajal, slipping down bags onto the waterbody below from the second floor of the building after a long wait outside her uncle's residence. When the second bag came down, we opened the bag and recovered Rs 17 lakh from the spot. The accused Seal reached the house around 2 am and was arrested. Since it was sundown, we could not arrest Kajal. However, we will name her in the chargesheet," said an investigating officer.Despite the recovery of most of the stolen cash, police are still investigating the whereabouts of the remaining Rs 3 lakh and the stolen sarees. A local court remanded Seal in police custody till May 27.