Bolarum arms theft accused had criminal cases before Army selection
Retired Army Havaldar U. Mallesh, accused in the Bolarum arms theft case, had two criminal cases before joining the Army in 2010, a background check has found.
A background check into retired Army Havaldar U. Mallesh, an accused in the Bolarum arms theft case, has revealed that he faced two criminal cases before he was selected for the Army in 2010.
According to investigators, a theft case was registered against Mallesh at Achampet police station in 2005. Two years later, in 2007, he was named as an accused in a case involving the theft of gold jewellery and silver from a house under the Amrabad police station limits.
Police are now examining how Mallesh was recruited into the Army despite this earlier criminal record. Army officials are also said to be conducting a separate inquiry into the circumstances of his selection.
Investigators have additionally found that Mallesh allegedly stole arms and ammunition from the 20 Battalion, Madras Regiment, in Bolarum with the intention of getting his senior officers into trouble and exposing them to disciplinary action over the missing cache.
Mallesh was arrested on September 11 in connection with the theft of 12 firearms and more than 1,800 rounds of ammunition from the Madras Regiment premises. The entire stolen cache was subsequently recovered.
He is currently in 10-day police custody. Bolarum police took him into custody from Chanchalguda jail at 11 a.m. on September 22, and the custody period is set to conclude on October 1.
An officer close to the investigation said further information about Mallesh's involvement and possible accomplices would be revealed in due time.