Man arrested for stealing gemstones worth Rs 5 lakh from Behala store
Times of India | 20 July 2026
Kolkata: A man has been arrested for allegedly posing as a customer to steal gemstones worth nearly Rs 5 lakh from a jewelry shop in Behala on Thursday. The accused, 40-year-old Prabhat Debnath, was tracked down to his residence in Durgapur within 24 hours of committing the crime.
According to cops, the jewellery store was inaugurated on Thursday, the day of Rath Yatra, and the owners had promoted various discounts on Facebook. Debnath, his wife and child visited the Behala store from Durgapur. Inside the crowded showroom, Debnath spent a considerable amount of time examining a wide variety of precious stones, including emeralds, rubies, and pearls. He finalised the purchase of a few pearls, paid approximately Rs 5,000 via UPI, and left.
The theft came to light later that night when the store employees conducted a routine inventory check before closing. They discovered that highly valuable emeralds and rubies were missing from the display trays. The shop owner approached the Behala cops and lodged a formal written complaint.
Investigators checked the shop’s CCTV footage and flagged Debnath due to his suspicious hand movements. They then approached the bank to trace the mobile number linked to the Rs 5,000 UPI transaction he had made earlier.
Armed with the phone location, a team from the Behala Police Station raided Debnath’s house in Durgapur on Friday night and seized a portion of the stolen gemstones. The Alipore Court on Saturday sent the accused to police custody till July 22.