The Narmada police on Friday arrested a 43-year-old man for allegedly attempting a watermelon heist in Nikoli village of the district. According to the complaint filed by a farm owner, the accused Sandeep Vasava had sneaked into the farm late on Thursday along with his accomplice and tried to steal 90 kgs of watermelon. However, the owner reached the farm and raised an alarm and the accused managed to flee, leaving the watermelons behind. Vasava is a native of Navapara village in Nandod taluka of the district. The police recovered a tempo full of watermelons from the spot. The accused was nabbed from his village. "The accused is a daily wage labourer and had returned to the village from Rajkot after the lockdown. He said he was unable to sustain himself and had planned to steal watermelons and sell them. The other accused, who is still on the run, had agreed to lend his tempo for the purpose. He had also accompanied Sandeep to the farm," said DA Christian, the investigating officer in the case. Based on the complaint filed by the farm owner, Sandeep and his aide have been booked under IPC sections 379 (Punishment for theft), 511 (Punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment.), 447 (Punishment for criminal trespass) and 114 (Abettor present).
