The technician had kept Rs 3.5 lakh in cash and gold and silver ornaments worth about Rs 5 lakh in a bag to purchase a plot of land

Buxar: Unidentified thieves allegedly decamped with cash, jewellery and a cellphone worth around Rs 8.5 lakh from the residence of a railway technician in the Southern Railway Colony under Mufassil police station area on Saturday night. Police registered an FIR on Sunday and launched an investigation.The victim, Mahendra Tirkey, a technician with Indian Railways, told police that his family had kept Rs 3.5 lakh in cash and gold and silver ornaments worth about Rs 5 lakh in a bag as they were planning to purchase a plot of land.According to the complaint, the family was asleep when the burglars entered the house around 2am and fled with the bag containing the cash and jewellery. They also took a cellphone. The theft came to light on Sunday morning when family members found the bag and phone missing. After an unsuccessful search inside the house, they alerted the police.Mufassil police outpost in charge Guddu Chaudhary said an FIR had been registered and a police team had visited the spot for investigation. Police are questioning local residents and examining CCTV footage from the area to identify the culprits.The incident has caused concern among residents of the railway colony, who have demanded increased night patrolling and stronger security measures to prevent such crimes.