Palamau police have alerted managers of schools which have been locked during the Covid pandemic as thieves are on the prowl.

“A daylight theft was committed in Westfield Public School at Bhawandee on August 19,” said SDPO Sadar Sandip Kumar Gupta on Wednesday.

Gupta said the private school’s director Awadesh Pandey lodged an FIR on August 20.

The Chainpur police caught and jailed two thieves, Azad Ansari and Ashraf Qureishi, on Tuesday.

Stolen electrical goods were recovered, including a motor pump, a stabilizer, 2 ceiling fans and 4 changer boards.

“All government and private schools are shut during this pandemic. Some schools have security guards. Many have no such facility. We have asked school managements to keep a watch on school property,” said the SDPO.

Pandey said there were more stolen goods that were yet to be recovered.

“These include more than 200 switches and bathroom fittings. Three bundles of wires too are missing,” he said.

Officer in charge of Chainpur police station Sunit Kumar said, “A person had taken pictures of the thieves in the school on August 19. These pictures helped us trace, track and nab the thieves.”

Director Pandey said the person in question was the wife of the school’s security guard.

“She showed the courage to take photographs of thieves. Our guard was not present then and this woman showed discretion by not making any sound while clicking pictures,” he said, adding that the pictures were given to the Chainpur police.

Sunit Kumar said they matched these pictures with CCTV footage to nab the thieves.