Bengaluru: Job Loss During COVID Drives Techie to Theft, Arrest Follows

BENGALURU, India – A 26-year-old former IT worker has been arrested in Bengaluru for allegedly stealing over two dozen laptops from paying guest (PG) accommodations across the city. Police identified the suspect as Jassie Agarwal, who moved to Bengaluru from Noida seeking employment.

Agarwal’s descent into desperation began when the pandemic swept away her livelihood. Stranded in Bengaluru and battling financial hardship, she allegedly targeted the easy vulnerability of paying guest accommodations. Laptops, left unattended or plugged into chargers, became a lifeline. Agarwal reportedly slipped back to her hometown, hoping to turn stolen tech into cash on the black market.

Her actions, however, left a digital trail. Complaints from PG residents about missing laptops sparked a police investigation that ultimately traced back to Agarwal, culminating in her arrest.

Agarwal’s case isn’t an isolated incident. Desperate times can lead to desperate measures and her story spotlights the long shadow cast by COVID’s economic devastation. While theft can never be condoned, her narrative raises troubling questions about the support systems available for those who fell through the cracks.