Odisha: 70-year-old Dutch tourist, who was robbed and forced to beg outside Puri Jagannath Temple, returns home after 3 months; police nab accused taxi driver
Puri: After a tedious ordeal, finally a tourist from Netherlands, Van Arkel Anthonie (70), whose belongings were looted by a taxi driver, was sent back home, thanks to the district administration, which made it possible.
According to reports, Anthonie, a tourist, was a victim of looting. His taxi driver looted his cash, camera, and other belongings and fled.
Anthonie filed a complaint with the police, furnishing the taxi number.
The police, after a prolonged delay, managed to seize the taxi but failed to nab the driver.
Anthonie was found begging in front of the Sri Jagannath temple. On January 25, a local scribe, Vishnudutt Das, spotted him, and after learning of his ordeal, he took him to a government shelter and put him there.
He organised a media campaign reflecting the plight of the visitor and against the police's inability to arrest the culprit and recover cash and other items from the culprit.
According to Anthony, on January 10, he hired a taxi and went to Bhubaneswar to exchange cash.
He returned to his hotel located along the Puri-Konark Marine Drive road.
The taxi driver fled, taking his cash of Rs. 3.5 lakh, a diamond ring, a watch, a camera, and other belongings worth more than six lakh rupees.
Anthonie filed a complaint with the Puri Marine Police Station.
The police were unable to arrest the driver.
After much hue and cry in the media, the district administration shifted the tourist and housed him in a beggar shelter.
Thereafter, he was again shifted to Panthanivas and to the special circuit house, where he remained till his tickets were arranged.
In the meantime, the administration contacted the embassy.
On Thursday, district superintendent of police Pinak Mishra informed the media that all arrangements have been made to send Anthonie to his home.
On Thursday, he left for Nagpur; from there, he will fly to the Netherlands, the SP informed.
The district administration sent an officer along with Anthonie to see him off at the Bhubaneswar airport.
Anthonie will board a flight to the Netherlands on Friday from Nagpur.
In the meantime, Puri police informed us that the accused driver, Sagar Mullick, of Cuttack, has been nabbed and is being interrogated.
The police recovered Rs. 30,000 in cash, his wrist watch, and a diamond ring from his Cuttack house.
The police, the SP said, have kept Anthonie's home address and the bank account number.
The stolen property was recovered from the accused, and the police said that the cash seized from the taxi drive will be deposited in his account and other things will be sent to his
