ERNAKULAM, Kerala — Kerala police have registered a first information report after evidence items, including a Rado watch worth nearly Rs 1.9 lakh, went missing from the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-II evidence room in Ernakulam. The missing items pertain to 124 cases spanning from January 1, 2016 to September 21, 2026, according to the FIR registered by Ernakulam Central Police.
The case has been registered under Section 306 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which deals with theft by a clerk or servant of property in possession of their master. The theft came to light after a woman industrialist from Kochi filed a claim petition last month seeking the release of her husband's watch, which was part of a 2016 case. South Police had previously recovered the items from a moneylender in Thrissur's Triprayar.
When court officials checked the storage facility to release the watch, they found it missing. A subsequent examination of records, including audit reports, revealed that materials in 123 other cases were also missing. The room where case properties were stored had reportedly been shifted at some point, and investigators are examining court registers to determine whether the items went missing.
CCTV footage is being scrutinised and statements will be recorded from court staff, including the employee responsible for the strongroom, a police source said. The incident highlights concerns about evidence management and security protocols within the court's custody.
The FIR was registered based on a complaint by the junior superintendent of the JFCM-II Court. Police said they had launched an investigation into how the items went missing from the court's property room over what appears to be an extended period.
