Dreams of buying land drives help to steal jewellery from Malabar Hill flat

The police said the couple had hired the accused, identified as Laxmi Sawale, in December 2022.
“They have a full-time caretaker, but as the caretaker also needed to visit her native place from time to time, the couple wanted another person in her absence,” a police officer said.

In December 2022, when their full-time caretaker had left for her native place in Nepal, the 75-year-old woman contacted an agency, which sent Laxmi to their house. “She worked for a month and left. She returned in March but again left after working for a month,” the officer added.
During her second stint, the police said the accused allegedly stole gold and diamond jewelleries from her house. The theft came to light on July 8.

The first clue came from a missing necklace. The police said the 75-year-old woman had worn a necklace in March. “She wore the necklace only once that month. However on July 8, she had to attend a function for which she asked Laxmi to fetch the necklace from her wardrobe,” the officer said. After Laxmi said she could not find it, the woman, after consulting other family members, reported the matter to the police on July 11. The police said initially, the complainant did not suspect Laxmi. During investigation, the police started questioning current and former house helps at their house. As she came under suspicion, Laxmi was brought to the police station and during interrogation, she confessed to the crime.

“At the time of registration of FIR, we were told that valuables worth Rs 6.5 lakh were stolen. However, we have recovered a lot more jewellery than what was reported missing and the estimated cost is more than Rs 60 lakh,” an officer said. The police further said that the woman, who stays with her husband and son at Diva in Thane, decided to steal because she wanted to buy land in Alibaug. “She wanted to buy a house, she needed money to fund her children’s education,” he added.