Mumbai : Crime Branch officials have arrested two people for plotting and burlging a jewellery shop in Jawahar nagar in Santacruz. The officials have recovered jewellery worth Rs 15 lakh from those arrested.
Those arrested have been identified as brothers Madansingh Rodsingh Rajput and Manohar Rodsingh Rajput, hailing from Rajasthan. Both were residents of Kandivli.
The shop, Mithalal jewelers, was burgled on Oct 18 in a daring daylight heist. “Around 6 pm, four unidentified men entered the premises, threatened the owner with a knife and then proceeded to tie him up with a rope. They then fled with gold and silver jewellery worth Rs15 lakh,” said Atulchandra Kulkarni, joint commissioner of police (crime).
The two accused had been keeping an eye on the shop and the schedule of the owner since the last three months. The shop, which has two floors, has the main showroom on the ground floor and a resting area and washroom on the mezzanine floor. “The duo with the help of some of assistants in the shop chalked out the schedule of the owner and when he went up to the upper section for a break, entered the shop,” Kulkarni added.
With no CCTV footage to show the recordings of the day, the officials had no clues to piece together the crime. “On Friday, we received a tip that two people matching the description of the burglars were at Kandivli station. Our officials reached the station and arrested the two, who were planning to flee the city and head to Rajasthan,” Kulkarni explained.
During investigation it was found that Madan singh (29) and Manohar (26) had come to Mumbai more than 10 years ago to make a living. Having done menial jobs, they wanted to start their own business a few years ago and opened a jewellery shop in Kandivli but had to shut down after facing heavy losses.
“After that they used to take up odd jobs in the city and were also jobless for a year. During questioning they revealed that this burglary was to help them pay off all their loans and ease their financial troubles,” Kulkarni said.
The stolen jewellery was traced to a small rented house in a chawl in Kandivli close to the house of one of the brothers. “We are trying to check if they were involved in any previous crimes and also what role the other shop assistants played,” said Kulkarni.
