Here’s a deterrent criminals probably won’t forget. A special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court on Friday refused leniency to three members of a chain-snatching gang. The court sentenced them to not just seven years of rigorous imprisonment but also imposed a fine of Rs 15 lakh on each of them. Of the fine amount, Rs 1 lakh must be paid as compensation to the victim who had been hurt in an incident.
The court said a wrong message will go to society if undue leniency is shown to the accused, who are habitual offenders. It added that showing leniency would also amount to giving a premium to such miscreants by putting the life and property of society at risk.
Special judge Dinesh E Kothalikar further stated in his judgment that the men had been indulging in such activities for a long time and more than 19 cases were filed against the leader of the gang, the key accused. Even the other two members face a series of such charges. “It appears they are habituated to offences for gaining pecuniary advantages. There are no chances of reformation or correction,” the court said.
The Sion police station had registered an offence, wherein a woman’s mangalsutra was robbed on June 5, 2017, when she was crossing a road. She was out running errands, when two motorcycle-borne men came towards her. The pillion rider snatched her chain weighing 3.5 tolas, she said in her deposition in court. She had raised an alarm and a youth had tried chasing them, but the pillion rider had intimidated him with a knife. The youth, who had called the police, also appeared as a witness in the case.
