Business rivalry behind gold heist in Keralam’s Chala; the owner of a competing store taken into custody

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The ongoing investigation into the Chala gold heist has revealed that the crime was allegedly motivated by business rivalry with the intention of financially crippling the jewelery business.

The Fort police have taken Jayaram, the owner of a rival jewelery shop in the area, into custody for detailed questioning in connection with his suspected links to the conspiracy. He was taken into custody on the statement of Nandakumar, who was robbed of gold, that Jayaram had threatened him a few days before the robbery.

Police are probing whether Jayaram had any direct role in planning or executing the crime and whether he maintained any links with the other accused.

Five arrests

Five arrests have been made in the case so far. According to the police, Amol, a native of Maharashtra, and his associate Dileep from Thiruvananthapuram allegedly orchestrated the robbery to undermine Mr. Nandakumar’s business. Anoop Raj, a historian, was allegedly tasked with committing the crime, while other accused Anil Prasad and Vinod Antony allegedly assisted him.

Investigators suspect that the accused believed that stealing the gold would put Mr. Nandakumar’s customers in financial trouble and ultimately weaken his business. Amol, a gold agent, is suspected of recruiting a gang to carry out a heist.

The gang allegedly intercepted Mr. Nandakumar while he was returning home after closing a jewelery shop and fled with a bag containing gold.

Anoop, Anil and Vinod were nabbed from Padinjarathar in Wayanad. They reportedly fled to Tamil Nadu before heading to Bengaluru and later going to Wayanad. The other accused were caught in Thiruvananthapuram.

The police are looking for another suspect, Sravan, who allegedly tracked Mr. Nandakumar’s movements throughout the day and passed on information to the gang. He reportedly managed to escape when the other accused were caught.

Published – 15 Nov 2026 20:53 IST