Two cleaners arrested for stealing valuables from businessman’s house in Juhu

The Juhu police arrested two workers on Wednesday for allegedly stealing gold ornaments and cash worth Rs 5.3 lakh from the residence of a businessman in Juhu when the owner had gone out of state.

The accused, identified as Vijay Devendra, 34, and Shakti Shankar Mandal, 30, both live in the Nehru Nagar area in Juhu. Devendra works as a cleaner in a residential apartment in Juhu while Mandal works as a cleaner at an NGO.
According to the police, the complainant, N Patel, 76, lives in a bungalow situated on Road No. 6 on JVPD scheme in Juhu along with his wife while their son lives abroad. The family is into the business of rubber production and the couple had gone to Gujarat on January 1 for some work. Sensing an opportunity, the accused climbed on the backside wall and entered the bungalow. They broke open the door and stole cash, gold and silver ornaments worth Rs 5.3 lakh from the cupboard in the bedroom on the first floor.

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The incident came to light when the family returned on January 8 and found the door was broken and gold and silver were missing. They then filed a complaint at the Juhu police station. The Juhu police checked the CCTV footage of the building and vicinity and learnt that the incident occurred on January 8 and circulated the accused’s photos with their informants. The police soon got clues regarding the suspects and both were arrested on Wednesday. During interrogation, the accused Devendra revealed that he required money for his wife’s illness and hence became a part of the crime. Mandal planned the theft and he was standing outside the door to keep watch. The police have recovered some of the stolen booty, said assistant police inspector Ranjit Chavan of the Juhu police station.