Mumbai News: Terrorist Angle Rules Out In Navy Nagar Rifle Theft Case; Police Say 'Brothers Stole Weapon For...'

The Mumbai Crime Branch has ruled out any Maoist or terrorist links from the case pertaining to an Agniveer and his brother involved in the stealing of an INSAS rifle, 40 live cartridges, two loaded magazines from Colaba's Navy Nagar.

The incident took place last month, where both brothers were arrested within 48 hours of the theft from Asifabad in Telangana, a region which is known for its Naxal activity.

According to Times Of India report on October 13, the brothers stole the weapon for their own protection as their is Maoist scare in their village. Speaking of the investigation, a senior officer TOI, "They said since Rakesh had only a four-year service tenure, they wanted to keep the weapon for their own protection as their village in Telangana's Kumuram Bheed Asifabad is Maoist-affected. The officer also added that Rakesh's brother Umesh wanted to indulge in extortion activities using the weapon.

A chargesheet will be filed for the two brothers for the theft while the sources revealed that currently Alok Singh who handed the rifle to Rakesh has not been given any important duty and is at a detention center.

Did Umesh instigate his Agniveer brother Rakesh in committing the theft?

The report added that police suspect that Umesh, who runs a ration shop in Telangana's Adilabad district, reportedly instigated his brother to commit the theft. Moreover, the police stated that they believe Umesh has connections to local Maoist through an illegal liquor trade.

How the INSAS Rifle Was Stolen - A Recap

On September 6, Rakesh allegedly entered Navy Nagar impersonating a Quick Reaction Team (QRT) member. He then approached Alok Singh, a 20-year-old jawan on radar protection duty at AP Towers, and convinced him that he was sent to relieve him. He convinced him to hand over his rifle along with two loaded magazines.

Rakesh then threw the stolen weapon and magazines over a wall to Umesh, after which the two fled to Lokmanya Tilak Terminus and boarded a train to Telangana.

Later the same day, Alok returned to the radar post around 7 pm to collect his wristwatch, find that the unidentified man had vanished with the rifle and ammunition.

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