Man snatches phone to gift fiancée

Bhubaneswar: Shree Lingaraj police arrested a man for allegedly snatching a woman’s mobile phone to gift it to his fiancée, officials said on Friday. The accused, Rakesh Nayak (29), and his associate, Debabrata Baral (34), were taken into custody on Thursday night.The arrests followed a complaint lodged by a 25‑year‑old woman, who reported that three unidentified men snatched her phone near Radhaballav Mutt in Nageswartangi on Aug 4. Police examined CCTV footage from the area and identified Nayak, who is unemployed. He was picked up near Mausima Chowk on Thursday night. Based on his interrogation, police arrested Baral, a roadside tea vendor. The third suspect remains at large.“During questioning, Nayak admitted he was recently engaged and is set to marry next month. He claimed he had no money to buy a phone for his fiancée and planned the snatching,” a police officer said. The officer added that Nayak had a criminal history. He was arrested in a theft case by Bharatpur police on May 1, 2022. Later, another case was registered against him at Kharvela Nagar police station on March 15, 2023, for abusing a man.