Man accused of breaking into 26 houses arrested in Vizag

The Visakhapatnam city police said on Saturday (February 7) that they have arrested a 27-year-old IT employee from Hyderabad in connection with 26 house burglaries.

The accused, identified as A. Mahesh Reddy a.k.a. Sunny, is a native of Kakinada residing at Madhavadhara in Visakhapatnam. A total of 26 burglary cases have been registered against him across the city, involving the theft of 1,084.94 grams of gold, 6,333.5 grams of silver and ₹40,500 in cash. Following his arrest, the police recovered 699 grams of gold ornaments and 3.805 kg of silver ornaments.

Addressing a press conference at the police conference hall, Commissioner of Police Shankabratha Bagchi said Mahesh Reddy works as an IT employee in Hyderabad and has been involved in house break-ins from a young age. At 15, he broke into four houses at PM Palem, for which he was apprehended and sent to a juvenile home.

After his release, he continued to commit the crimes in Kakinada, Rajamahendravaram and several other areas, the police said. He had previously been arrested and spent about 14 months at the Rajahmundry Central Jail.

Mr. Bagch said Mahesh Reddy committed the burglaries whenever he visited his parents’ house in the city and struck houses within Gajuwaka, Arilova, Malkapuram, Pendurthi and Duvvada police stations limits.

He wore masks, a cap and gloves while breaking into houses and used hammers, screwdrivers, cutting pliers and drilling machines. He is a postgraduate and tech-savvy, said the police.

Mahesh Reddy committed these crimes to fund a lavish lifestyle. He used a luxury BMW car, which he had purchased with the stolen money, and frequently went on international trips — six so far.

He was arrested by police teams led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crimes) K. Latha Madhuri, Assistant Commissioner of Police-Dwaraka (In-charge Crimes) A. Narasimha Murthy and South Sub-Division Crime Inspector K. Srinivasa Rao, acting on a tip-off.