Gold fraud: Traders in Kozhikode flay continued delay in arrest of suspect

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Jewellery traders in Kozhikode city’s Kammath Lane observed a half-day shutdown on Saturday (August 22, 2026) in protest against the alleged failure of the police to arrest the accused in a major gold fraud case involving jewellery worth ₹1.50 crore.

The protesters aligned under the Kammath Lane Gold and Silver Merchants’ Association complained that there was no breakthrough in the probe even 26 days after the fraud, with the accused still at large. The traders demanded that the investigation be handed over to a senior police officer or a special investigation team (SIT) to get the deserving attention.

The incident leading to the case took place on July 27, when Safarnas, who was running a jewellery shop, reportedly collected 948 grams of gold worth ₹1.5 crore from over 10 jewellery shops in Kammath Lane and disappeared.

According to the traders, the wholesalers and retailers in the area commonly extend mutual assistance by sourcing jewellery from one another when a particular design requested by a customer is not available in a shop. The accused allegedly exploited this practice by taking gold from different jewellery stores on the pretext of showing it to customers.

The traders became suspicious only when the gold was not returned even after the agreed period. When they later went to the accused’s shop, he was found absconding and they realised that they had been defrauded. A complaint was subsequently lodged at the Town police station, following which an FIR was registered and statements of 11 traders were recorded.

“There is no clue yet about the absconding accused. The negligence continues at a time when some reports confirm the attempts of the accused to secure anticipatory bail,” said a local trader now part of the protest. He said despite the rejection of the anticipatory bail in the first attempt, the police could not locate him.

Representatives of the Kammath Lane Gold and Silver Merchants’ Association said the delay in the investigation could lead to the destruction of evidence and complained that the traders were losing confidence in the police system. They demanded that steps to trace and arrest the accused be intensified to get justice for the cheated traders.

The district committee of the Gold and Silver Merchants’ Association also came in support of the protesters and criticised the police, alleging that officers were totally clueless even three weeks after the probe. They said the gold and silver merchants would be compelled to launch stronger protests in the wake of the ineffective probe.

Meanwhile, police sources said a four-member special squad had already been formed as part of the investigation into the incident. The unexpected transfer of some of the officers in the squad hit the pace of the investigation and it would be resolved soon, they claimed.

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