In a major crackdown on street crime in the capital city, the Nayapalli Police have arrested the primary suspect along with two receivers involved in the snatching of a gold chain with a diamond pendant worth an estimated ₹3.50 lakh.
The incident took place on October 24, 2026, at around 8:33 PM near Saanvi Niwas in Jayadev Vihar. According to the complaint filed by Sanjeev Kumar Mohanty, he and his wife had parked their Hyundai Creta car outside his mother-in-law’s house. As they were alighting, a scooter-borne assailant wearing a black helmet violently ripped away the diamond-pendant gold chain (weighing approximately 15 to 20 grams) from his wife’s neck.
The victim fell onto the road during the struggle, sustaining injuries, while the assailant fled on a black/blue scooter towards the Rameswar temple side. The injured woman was rushed to Shree Hospital on Lewis Road for medical treatment.
Following a formal complaint registered under Section 309(6) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on October 25 (Nayapalli PS Case No-865/2026), police launched a detailed probe involving scene inspection, witness interviews, and extensive CCTV footage tracking.
Acting on reliable intelligence, a police team intercepted the prime accused, Priyabrata Jena (37), from the Rasulgarh area along with the scooter used in the crime. During interrogation, Jena confessed to his involvement in multiple chain-snatching incidents across Nayapalli, Khandagiri, and Bharatpur police jurisdictions.
Jena disclosed that he handed over the stolen jewelry to two associates in the Chakeisaini area—Nrusingh Charan Sahoo (47) and Alok Senapati (37). Acting on these confessions, police arrested both receivers. Senapati was apprehended from his jewelry shop, KDM Jewellery, located near Prabhuji English Medium School in VSS Nagar.
Interrogation of Nrusingh Charan Sahoo further revealed that he had mortgaged the snatched gold chain at the Canara Bank branch on Link Road, Kataka, to secure a gold loan in his own name.
Criminal Antecedents of the Accused:
- Priyabrata Jena (37): Native of Durgaprasad, Nayagarh (currently residing at Plot No. 115, Chakeisaini, Mancheswar PS). Faces 7 criminal cases across various police stations.
- Nrusingh Charan Sahoo (47): Native of Goponidia, Jajpur (currently residing at Plot No. 430, Chakeisaini, Mancheswar PS). Faces 4 previous cases.
- Alok Senapati (37): Native of Golopur, Nimapara, Puri (operating KDM Jewellery, VSS Nagar). Faces 2 previous cases.
Further investigation is underway to trace and recover the remaining stolen gold ornaments and ascertain the involvement of any other co-conspirators in the network.
