Bengaluru 15 May

In a bizarre case of burglary, a masked thief broke into a mobile phone shop in Bommanahalli – not just through the wall, but without wearing any clothes.

The theft occurred around 1.30am on 9 May at Hanuman Telecom, a shop owned by a local resident, Dinesh, near Hongasandra. According to the complaint filed with the police, the burglar drilled through the rear wall of the shop and made away with 85 mobile phones, worth nearly Rs 25 lakh.

CCTV footage captured the thief entering the shop nude, wearing only a mask and carrying a torch. Sources in the police department suspect that the man deliberately avoided wearing clothes to prevent identification. "In several cases, clothing patterns and brands have helped us trace suspects. This could be an attempt to outsmart our usual methods," said a police officer.

Shop owner Dinesh, who has run the outlet for several years, discovered the break-in the next morning and filed a police complaint. The footage has been handed over for forensic analysis.

While police have registered a case and initiated an investigation, the suspect remains at large.