Six guards arrested for robbing flat in Powai

Powai Police recently arrested six security guards employed at a housing society in Marol for robbing cash and valuables worth Rs 52.51 lakh from a businessman’s flat soon after he left on a trip with his family in November. A team of 9 men — four security guards and their five accomplices, had committed the crime, revealed a CCTV camera recording. While six have been arrested by the police, making a recovery of cash and valuables worth Rs 10.53 lakh, police are on the lookout for three others.

According to police, the complainant, Vikas Kusarkar, who runs an auto spare parts outlet in Kurla, lives in a first floor flat at Mount View Apartments in Bhavani Nagar, Andheri (E). He had gone for an eight-day trip to Dubai with his family on November 1. Soon after he left, his house was burgled the next day, and Kusarkar cut his trip short to return to the city. Police suspected the security guard’s role in the crime, after they went missing. When police checked the CCTV recording, they found that the five guards had entered the building around 2 am on November 2 and were seen leaving with a bag at around 3.45 am and that confirmed their role in the offence.

Police teams were formed and sent to Nepal, in anticipation that they would try to flee to their hometown. Subsequently, police arrested four accused from Nepal border and booked them under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code for theft (section 380), house trespassing (section 457) and common intention (section 34). Meanwhile, a search for the other five accused, including the mastermind was underway.

During investigation, police learnt the locations of two main accuseds, following which a trap was laid and Lakshman Tamatta, 45, was arrested from Jamnagar in Gujarat, while Prakash Luhar, 33, was arrested from Delhi. Police recovered cash and valuable worth Rs 10.53 lakh from the arrested duo. Meanwhile, police are on the lookout for the other accused, who are on the run.