A man armed with a knife allegedly assaulted a 23-year-old receptionist and tried to rob her of her gold mangalsutra at a shoe and bag repair shop on 100 Feet Road in Bengaluru's Indiranagar on October 31, then held her hostage when she raised the alarm, The Hindu reported.
The mangalsutra weighed about 35 grams and was worth around ₹4.5 lakh, according to her complaint.
What happened, according to the complaint
The woman, who has worked at the shop for nearly three years, was alone when the man, wearing a helmet and gloves, came in at about 11.45 am. Claiming that someone was trying to kill him, he jumped over the counter.
When she tried to call the shop owner, he allegedly forced her to sit, held her mouth shut and threatened to kill her if she screamed. He allegedly attacked her with a knife, stuck her hands to the desk with adhesive, stuffed a cloth in her mouth and pulled off the mangalsutra.
She managed to free her hands and raised the alarm. As people rushed in, he allegedly grabbed her by the hair, dragged her aside and held the knife to her neck, warning them to stay back. When the shop owner and others tried to overpower him, he allegedly swung the knife at them and attacked the owner before trying to flee with the chain.
How he was caught
Passers-by and traffic police chased and caught him and handed him over to the Indiranagar police, The Hindu reported. He has been remanded in judicial custody. The woman was safe and did not suffer serious injuries, The Logical Indian reported.
Preliminary information suggests he may be suffering from mental health problems and depression, a police officer said. The investigation is continuing.