Thieves Pray Before Deity, Then Steal Donation Boxes From Uttarakhand Temple

Masked thieves broke into a prominent temple in Udham Singh Nagar and carried out a brazen theft — but not before first offering prayers before the deity, police said on Friday.

The incident occurred at Ateriya Mata Temple in Rudrapur. The theft came to light around 5 am when a temple attendant arrived to open the premises and found multiple donation boxes missing, with the locks of others broken.

Police said CCTV footage showed one of the masked suspects bowing his head and folding his hands before the idol of the goddess moments before lifting a donation box and fleeing. The visuals have since gone viral.

According to senior police officer Daulat Ram Arya, five donation boxes were targeted. Cash was stolen from four boxes after their locks were broken, while one entire box was taken away.

The suspects had covered their faces with cloth, making identification difficult.

Temple manager Arvind Sharma said a suspicious individual had allegedly surveyed the temple premises in a vehicle a day before the incident. Police are investigating this angle along with reviewing CCTV footage and other evidence.

The temple management has announced a reward of ₹1 lakh for information leading to the arrest of the accused.

As a precaution, entry of general devotees has been temporarily restricted while security arrangements at the temple are reviewed. Furthermore, police expressed confidence that the accused will be identified and apprehended soon.