Bengaluru Police Restore Eight Stolen Sporting Medals to Former Olympian M.M. Somaya

Arrests and recovery

Investigators in Bengaluru have tracked down eight international sporting medals that were taken from the home of former hockey player M.M. Somaya. Two men were detained and a motorcycle was seized, with the recovered property including the gold medal from the 1980 Moscow Olympics, which holds particular significance for the family.

Officers from the Indiranagar police station made the arrests on November 9 near Hagalahalli Cross in Ramanagara. Their suspicions centred on Manikya, also called Manikanta, aged 31 and working as a labourer, and on Bharat, 25. Police say Manikanta faces 33 criminal cases, 25 in Karnataka and eight in Tamil Nadu, and carries three proclamation proceedings and six non-bailable warrants. Bharat is linked to two separate cases. Both were brought before a court on November 10 and remanded to eight days of police custody.

How the burglary unfolded

The house at B.M. Kaval was entered while Somaya and his relatives were in Kodagu. They had left Bengaluru on October 25. A complaint lodged on October 28 stated that the front lock had been forced open, and that cash, gold and silver items were missing alongside the medals.

Eight specialised teams were assembled under the supervision of the Deputy Commissioner of Police for the East Division and the Assistant Commissioner for Halasuru Sub-Division. Police believe the thieves targeted the house without grasping what the medals were worth or what they meant to their owner.

Where the medals went

Interrogation revealed that one gold and one silver medal had been sold to a gold-buying business in Rajajinagar. Officers recovered those two pieces from the shop. The remaining six medals, a traditional Kodava dagger, a camera and an Olympic kit bag were found at a property in Hoskote linked to one of the accused.

The collection includes a silver from the 1982 Asian Games, a bronze from the 1986 Seoul Asian Games, a bronze from the 1982 Champions Trophy in Amsterdam and a gold from a tournament in Loiano, Italy. Participation medals from the 1984 Los Angeles and 1988 Seoul Olympics and a silver connected to the 300th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh were also returned.

Reaction

Somaya expressed thanks to the force and singled out the Indiranagar inspector, who he said had assured him from the outset that the belongings would be found. “I feel like I have won the medals all over again,” he said.

City Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh announced a reward of ₹1 lakh for the team responsible for the breakthrough.

What next

A third suspect remains at large, and police are continuing to search for him as well as for the rest of the missing items.