Bengaluru, 27 Jan

A Nepalese couple allegedly stole gold and diamond jewellery, silver items, and cash worth around Rs 18 crore from a builder’s Marathahalli residence, police said on Tuesday.

The incident occurred on 25 January at the house where the couple was employed, they added.

The family had employed several domestic workers, including the Nepalese couple. On Sunday morning, they left the house to attend a function, police said.

After 12.30pm, another domestic worker alerted the owner that the house had been ransacked. On returning, the family found lockers on the ground and the first floor broken open.

Police said the couple allegedly fled with about 11.5kg of gold and diamond jewellery, 5kg of silver articles, and Rs 11.5 lakh in cash, valued at around Rs 18 crore.

A senior police officer said the accused are suspected to have had prior knowledge of the family’s movements and allegedly cut off the power supply to disable CCTV cameras.

A case has been registered, and a special team formed to trace the couple, police said, adding that the investigation is ongoing.