Kolar, 21 Sept

In a dramatic breakthrough, Kolar police have arrested a man who had been evading court hearings for 23 years after securing bail in a house burglary case.

The accused, Moula Basha, now 45, was arrested on 19 September from Medihalli village in Hoskote taluk, Bengaluru Rural district. He had committed a theft at the home of a lone woman in Muneswaranagar, Kolar, in 2002. Though initially arrested and granted bail, he fled and was declared untraceable.

Basha reportedly moved to North India and worked as a lorry cleaner for several years before quietly returning to his native village, where he resumed work as a lorry cleaner and stone carver.

Over the years, proclamation orders and warrants were issued regularly, and the case was listed under Long Pending Reports. Kolar SP B Nikhil, while reviewing such cases, tasked Inspector Sadananda with locating Basha.

Following discreet inquiries, Constables Shekar and Ramesh confirmed his identity and arrested him at his residence.

Basha, who was 22 at the time of the crime, now has two children, including a 17-year-old son. He has been remanded to judicial custody.