Stray dog mistakes bag for food, walks away with Rs 4 lakh jewellery from hospital

CCTV at a hospital in Madhya Pradesh showed a stray dog carrying away a woman's jewellery bag from the surgical ward. Police later recovered the bag intact, even as the episode raised questions about stray dogs and hospital security.Stray dog mistakes bag for food, walks away with Rs 4 lakh jewellery from hospitalA jewellery theft at a Madhya Pradesh hospital took a bizarre turn after CCTV footage revealed that the “thief” had four legs, a wagging tail and a taste for food.The incident came to light at Mandsaur District Hospital after a woman discovered that a bag containing jewellery worth around Rs 4 lakh had gone missing while she was there with her son, who was undergoing treatment.The woman, identified as Lata Bai, a resident of Kayampur, approached the Kotwali police after she realised the bag had disappeared. She had brought the jewellery with her because she was worried about leaving it at home while staying at the hospital with her son.According to police, the bag contained gold and silver jewellery worth approximately Rs 4 lakh, around Rs 2,000 in cash and some food items. Among the valuables were a gold mangalsutra, earrings, gold beads, silver anklets and other jewellery. The bag went missing sometime between 1 am and 6 am on the night of August 24. With the jewellery seemingly stolen from inside the hospital, police began checking CCTV footage from the premises and surrounding areas.What they saw at around 4 am, however, left them surprised. The footage showed a dog entering the hospital's surgical ward and approaching the bag. The animal then picked up the bag in its mouth and walked out of the ward, carrying it away from the hospital.Police subsequently began tracking the dog's movements through CCTV cameras installed at different locations. Instead of following the trail of a suspected human thief, officers were effectively following the movements of a stray dog that had apparently been drawn to the bag.Watch the video here:The station in-charge of Kotwali police station said that Lata Bai had kept the bag near a storage cupboard close to where her children were sitting.According to him, the bag also contained food items, and the smell may have attracted the dog.After tracking the animal through CCTV footage and conducting a search around the hospital, the police eventually located the bag and recovered it. The jewellery and other belongings were found intact.The police later returned the recovered items to Lata Bai after completing the necessary formalities. She expressed her gratitude to the police team for acting promptly and helping recover the valuables.The incident, while ending with the jewellery being returned to its owner, has also raised questions about the presence of stray dogs inside the hospital and security arrangements on the premises.- EndsPublished By: Yashna TalwarPublished On: Aug 25, 2026 20:35 IST