Surat's Rs 32cr diamond ‘theft’ was staged: Cops say owner hoped to claim Rs 20 crore from insurance; trader, son earlier bagged Rs 8 lakh claim

SURAT: In a sensational revelation, investigation into the theft of Rs 32.5 crore worth rough and polished diamonds from a Kapodra unit revealed that the burglary was staged by none other than the owner to repay piling debt of Rs 20 crore. Police said the conspiracy stemmed from the steep decline in fortunes post-Covid for unit owner Devendra Chaudhary whose workforce eroded from 1,500 to just 15 amid the downturn in diamond industry.Chaudhary's son Piyush was also found to be co-conspirator, engaging four people to commit the theft. However, police suspect involvement of more people. Chaudhary had lodged a complaint at Kapodra police station on Aug 18 informing that burglars had stolen diamonds, the CCTV and the DVR, taking advantage of the extended holiday weekend from Aug 15 to Aug 17.After the incident, DCP (zone 1) Alok Kumar and DCP (crime) Bhavesh Rojiya formed several teams to crack the case."Chaudhary incurred a debt of Rs 20 crore. He paid a Rs 3.75 lakh insurance premium recently. Chaudhary stood to receive Rs 2 crore if his diamonds were lost outside the unit, but a far larger Rs 20 crore payout if the loss occurred within his office. So, he and his son conspired to get the diamonds stolen," Kumar said.They took their driver Vikas into confidence and offered him Rs 10 lakh to stage the theft. Vikas managed to get some people who came in an rickshaw and carried out the theft. It is suspected that they replaced the real diamonds with fake ones in the safe, which the hired men broke open using a gas cutter.Two people have been detained but police did not share further details.Piyush also accompanied these people and he was seen in CCTV footage that the police gathered from the routes that the accused took to exit the locality. During the investigation, police also found that the lock of the unit's gate was not broken but opened with a key. This led the police to suspect that someone insider was involved in the crime.After the incident, Devendra told police that his turnover was Rs 300 crore. He told the media that he suspected someone acquainted or associated with his unit of the theft.Chaudhary is a native of Rajasthan and has been involved in the diamond industry in Surat for the last 20 years.Accused took insurance beforeInvestigators told TOI that this was not the first time Devendra Chaudhary and his son had hatched a conspiracy to claim insurance money fraudulently. "We have reliably learnt that they earlier secured an insurance payout of Rs 8 lakh after filing a complaint with Katargam police. Having gotten away with it once, they grew emboldened and plotted to swindle a far bigger sum," an official said.