A Noida-based man has been arrested for allegedly stealing a 50-million-year-old Gastropod Fossil from the Geological Survey of India's (GSI) stall at the India International Trade Fair 2024, police said on Tuesday.

According to police, over 100 CCTV footages from the location and nearby stalls, pavilions, and halls were analysed to identify the accused, a statement by the Delhi Police said.

The theft took place on November 21 in Hall Number four of the Ministry Mines Pavilion, they said.

GSI staff reported that the fossil, weighing one kilogram and measuring 14 cm in length, 10 cm in width, and 12 cm in height, had gone missing from their stall, the statement said.

A gastropod fossil is the preserved remains of an ancient snail or slug.

An FIR was registered and investigation was launched, the police said.

Using technical analysis, the accused was identified and tracked to Noida. Based on information the police team conducted a raid in Sector 22 of Noida and apprehended Manoj Kumar Mishra (49), it said.

During interrogation, Mishra confessed to the theft and the Gastropod Fossil was recovered from his possession. Also, the ticket dated November 21, that he used for entry into IITF-2024 was seized from his, a statement issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Police Sumit Kumar Jha said.

He is an employee of a five star hotel in Noida and a regular visitor to the Trade Fair with a keen interest in various art forms, the statement read.

On November 21, he stole the Gastropod Fossil from the Geological Survey of India stall with the intention of selling it at a high price. On checking his antecedents, he was not found to be involved in any previous criminal case, it said.

Further investigation is underway, the police said.

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