By Express News Service KOCHI: The ‘patriotic’ thief who broke into a home at Thiruvankulam recently and left after writing an apology note upon realising that it belonged to a retired army colonel, is a professional who does not leave any clues that can be used to track him down. “Before entering the house, he had opened the locks of two shops with precision and only broke the shutters of the rooms where the cash was kept. Though the fingerprint and dog squads checked the spots for clues, they could not trace any crucial evidence to track him down. Also, CCTV footage is not helpful as he had covered his face,” said a police official. Police officials have been unable to trace the criminal’s whereabouts even five days after the incident. Around 1 am on Tuesday, the thief had broken into the house of Issac Mani, a retired army officer who is settled with his family in Qatar. He consumed alcohol from one of the liquor bottles in the house. In the apology that he scribbled on the wall, the thief said, “I realised it was a military officer’s residence only when I saw the cap (of the colonel). If I had known it, I wouldn’t have broken into the house.” The police officials were informed about the theft attempt by the maid deployed to clean the premises of the house. A ‘humble request’ The thief also put the documents and a bag he had stolen from Bharat Tyres near the house and requested the occupants to hand them over to the shop owner. A sum of Rs 10,000 was found missing from the tyre shop as were a few coins from another shop nearby. In both the shops, the locks were opened without any damage. Shop owners said a person who has good knowledge of the area must have operated the theft.

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