Hyderabad: A 21-year-old man was arrested for stealing a rare bonsai plant which belonged to V. Appa Rao, a retired IPS officer and former Director General of Police, on Saturday.
The police have identified the accused as Gollapudi Prasannanjaneyulu, a construction worker and resident of Yousufguda and another accused Abhishek, who is on a run.
Police has taken Prasannanjaneyulu into custody and seized the 15-year-old rare bonsai plant from his residence.
“The accused had an eye on the bonsai plant which was placed in front of the main gate of the retired IPS officer in Jubilee Hills,” police said.
According to the police, on 10 January 2021, Abhishek and Gollapudi stole the bonsai plant on their bike. They stole the plant with a plan to later sell it to interested customers.
The police verified the CCTV footages of the area and identified the accused with the help of informants.
Rao filed a complaint on 12 January 2021 at Jubilee Hills police station for the theft of the plant, which was stolen from his residence.
The plant was stolen on Sunday from the retired IPS officer’s residence and three years back another rare Jade Bonsai tree was stolen from Mr Rao’s house.