Burglar who made his own tools, traded in stocks worth Rs 20 lakh a day

KOCHI: One does not come across burglars with large amounts of savings in their bank accounts everyday. While a large number of them become burglars accidentally, a few of them enter the profession when all other doors close in front of them, according to the police. But Jose Mathew, a burglar who had carried out hundreds of robberies, was different from others and he had created his own style of robbery.

According to the police, 50-year-old Mathew, who was arrested during a robbery attempt in Perumbavoor last week by Ernakulam rural police, has invested the lakhs of money that he had amassed in the stock market. He carried out intra-day trading worth Rs 20 lakh in different stocks.

As per the information received by the police, Mathew has looted over 7kg of gold ornaments in the last 20 years. Though he completed his jail time in 30 cases, he has since committed several other house break-ins across the state. “He is not like other burglars. He has taken this as a profession and is addicted to it. But we were able to catch him,” said Ernakulam Rural SP Vivek Kumar.

According to the SP, he used to sell the gold ornaments to jewellery owners after melting them into bars. “He committed his first robbery in 1992 in Wayanad. Though he was arrested in the case, he continued the crime. Over the years, he has developed over 100 tools to carry out burglaries. He created a drilling machine out of a car wiper motor to reduce noise while breaking into a house. Some of the tools, which include screwdrivers, were developed using car wiper blades,” said the officer.

Interestingly, he never used any vehicle during the crime though he owned one. “He always reached the spot on barefoot. This actually delayed his arrest as we didn’t have any clue about the person. Most importantly, he committed the robberies in the houses of those who are financially sound,” said an  officer who questioned him. “During the day, he led a normal life. He introduced himself to everyone as a fish farmer. This helped him hide his real face,” said the officer.