Retired Army Havildar arrested for stealing rifles, ammunition from Hyderabad military unit
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Hyderabad , September 12 : Hyderabad Police have arrested a retired Army Havildar for allegedly stealing firearms and nearly 1,900 rounds of ammunition from the Kote and Magazine rooms of the 20 Battalion, Madras Regiment, in the high-security military area of Bolarum in Secunderabad Cantonment.
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The accused has been identified as Upputholla Mallesh, 37, who joined the Army in 2010 and retired on June 30, 2026. Police said the theft took place during the intervening night of August 30 and 31, with preliminary investigations suggesting that he was upset over his early retirement.
According to police, Mallesh allegedly stole four AK-203 rifles, one INSAS rifle, seven pistols, magazines, a passive night-vision binocular and nearly 1,900 rounds of ammunition.
Telangana DGP CV Anand said Mallesh allegedly entered the military unit again and took magazine covers before returning to his house in Balaji Nagar. CCTV footage showed him reaching home at around 4:34 am.
He later placed the stolen material in his white Brezza car. Police said the firearms and ammunition had initially been kept at a temple, from where Mallesh collected them before leaving for Achampet.
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According to reports, police said Mallesh travelled through the Outer Ring Road, Sagar Ring Road and Bangalore Gate Road while avoiding the Srisailam Road to stay away from toll gates. During the journey, he allegedly picked up passengers to create evidence that he was travelling for regular work. He picked up four people near Sagar Ring Road, dropped them at Devarakonda and collected payment. He later picked up two more passengers at Dindi.
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Mallesh reached Achampet at around 1:15 pm on August 31, police said Police said Mallesh became nervous as suspicion around him increased and allegedly shifted the stolen arms and ammunition on September 6 He reportedly confessed on September 10, following which Hyderabad Task Force teams recovered the entire stolen cache.