BANGALORE: Police have arrested four Latin American nationals from Goa in connection with Rs 1.5 crore jewellery theft case and recovered the ornaments stolen from a hotel room last week.

The foreigners--one from Venezuela, two from Columbia and one from El Salvador--were taken into custody on Monday by city Crime branch sleuths, police commissioner, Mr Shankar Bidari told reporters here on Tuesday.

The four-member gang had stolen the jewellery on March 22 from the hotel rooms of three jewellers from Jaipur who had brought it for a jewellery exhibition held in the city by breaking open the room door when the jewellers had gone out for dinner.

CCTV footage in which one of the gang members was seen entering the hotel provided the clue and CCB traced the culprits to Colva beach in Goa, Mr Bidri said.

The gang had visited the exhibition, watched the movements of the jewellers and conducted a recce around the hotel. After the theft, they had proceeded to Goa where they purchased some dolls and concealed the jewellery in them.

The gang had wrapped the jewellery in carbon paper so that it could evade detection by Customs. They attempted to send some of the dolls by courier to Columbia.

Meanwhile, the Goa police denied having any knowledge about the incident and nabbing of foreign nationals from the state. This was confirmed from the police inspector based in Colva, Mr Tushar Vernekar.