Mumbai: Within 24 hours of the crime, two people were arrested for allegedly stealing ornaments adorning the idol of Vaishno Devi in a Malad East temple. The duo was identified as Krushnkumar Harijan, 32, and Mrutyunjay Rai alias Tonu, 28. Hailing from Uttar Pradesh, they committed the theft to repay their debt, said the police.
The incident took place on October 12 when 800 gm of silver ornaments worth Rs45,000 were stolen, prompting the temple trustee to file a police case. The duo was traced with the help of technical investigation.
“Both the accused had taken loans, so they decided to commit theft to repay the debt. They had done recce a day before the incident. The police seized two crowns, two umbrellas and a glass from them,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 12) Smita Patil. Another cop said that Harijan worked at a diamond shop in Dahisar while Rai was employed at a hotel in his native. The former had taken Rs2 lakh loan for his father's treatment and the latter had borrowed Rs3 lakh after meeting with an accident.
