Dhenkanal: Armed robbers allegedly looted gold jewellery worth around Rs 10 lakh and cash from the residence of a retired librarian in Odisha's Dhenkanal district late on Monday night.

The incident took place at the house of Suresh Pani located near Saanda College under Parjang police station limits. According to reports, Pani and his wife Reena, a teacher at a local school, were on the first floor of their two-storey house, while the ground floor has been rented out.

Police said three armed miscreants avoided the CCTV cameras installed at the front of the house by entering from the rear. They allegedly cut through a wire fence, used a ladder to reach the balcony, broke open a fibre door and entered the house. The robbers also damaged the CCTV camera before carrying out the crime.

The accused allegedly threatened the couple with weapons, forced them to hand over the keys to the almirah and took their two mobile phones. They then locked the couple inside a room and fled with gold jewellery, estimated to be worth about Rs 10 lakh, along with Rs 5,000 in cash.

While escaping, the robbers reportedly discarded one of the stolen mobile phones near the Saanda Shiva Temple and another near Kantio Kateni. Police suspect the accused fled towards the Pandua area.

On receiving information, Parjang police reached the spot and launched an investigation into the robbery. Efforts are underway to identify and trace the accused.