Policemen investigate tree theft from the judge’s residence at Cantonment on Wednesday. Picture by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, Aug. 22: Thieves felled and took away a sandalwood tree from the residence of a Orissa High Court judge in the high security posh Cantonment area of the city early in the morning today.

The thieves struck at the bungalow of Justice M.M. Das and chopped off the 20-year-old tree when the inhabitants, including 10 staff members of the judge and a security guard, were asleep.

The home guard on security duty is said to have been made unconscious by the thieves. But, it could not be ascertained how the culprits escaped with the logs after cutting off the fragrant piece of timber with a mechanical saw without waking up the inhabitants.

Police suspect involvement of some of the staff members in the incident.

Sources said the timber that the criminals carried away was around eight to nine feet long, estimated to cost over Rs 50,000. Cantonment police have registered a case and senior officials inspected the site.

“All angles are being looked into to ensure that the culprits are nabbed and the stolen sandalwood is recovered,” said additional deputy commissioner of police Guru Das Kundu.

The officer said at least two to three persons had entered the premises by scaling the boundary wall from the court guest house side.

Sources said the culprits used a vehicle to transport the sandalwood. The cops have also recovered a wristwatch, suspected to belong to one of the thieves, from the spot.

The theft in the residence of a high court judge has raised eyebrows as Cantonment area is one of the VIP localities of the city.

“Over 10 employees, apart from three home guards deployed for security, stay at the judge’s residence,” said the judge’s peon Ashutosh Kundu.

Kundu said most of the employees stayed in the staff quarter on the premises while the three home guards were deployed in three shifts.

The home guard on night duty, Pratap Sethi, said to have seen one of the culprits. But, Sethi said he had fallen unconscious, perhaps under the influence of some substance sprayed on him by the thieves.

“Around 1am, I saw a person, who had covered his face with a handkerchief. I tried to get up, but failed and fell unconscious,” said Sethi, adding that he woke up around 5am but could not come out as the culprits had also locked the main gate of the residence with a rope.