Mumbai: Aspiring cop becomes chain-snatcher

A bikeborne chain snatcher who had terrorised locals in VasaiVirar areas over the last two months has been arrested by the Crime Branch of Mira Bhayandar Vasai Virar MBVV police The accused Amit Natthu Shanvar 29 aspired to join the police force but was unable to pass the recruitment exams last year in MumbaiFour backtoback chain snatching incidents had rocked the VasaiVirar region where women wearing jewellery had become afraid to step out after sunset Shanvar who worked in a beer shop in Vasai where he had rented a flat had been on a looting spree for his lavish prewedding parties and big wedding plans with his girlfriend whom he started dating recentlyCrime Branch officials told midday that unlike other chain snatchers Shanvar would always target women who were riding scooters ldquoHis modus operandi was particularly alarming because the victims were at the risk of losing their balance potentially resulting in permanent injury or even fatalities as their gold chains or mangalsutras were snatched with forcerdquo said a Crime Branch officer from MBVV policeThe bike he used for the crimes PicHanif PatelThe Deputy Commissioner of Police Crime Avinash Ambure asked his men to remain alert and conduct investigations parallel to Arnala Virar and Nalasopara police stations where the chainsnatching cases had been registered since December The crime branch unit 3 led by inspector Pramod Badakh managed to arrest him on February 1 The cops said that Shanvar belongs to the Varli tribe and is a native of Talasari in Dahanu taluka of Palghar districtHow he was caughtldquoShanvar would always commit the offence after sunset late in the evening when the vehiclesrsquo headlamps blind the lenses of CCTV cameras installed along the road He would always wear a helmet to avoid being recognised He would first ride parallel to his victimrsquos twowheeler to understand what ornaments she was wearing and then strike along a dark or dimly lit stretchrdquo said another officerldquoAs there was no CCTV footage to give a clear picture we pieced together evidence using multiple footage and traced the accused in Vasai West where he was living in a rented accommodationrdquo said the added With the arrest of Shanvar the crime branch has recovered gold worth R438 lakh from his possession and all the victims have been contacted by the police The victims have been asked to submit the bills of their ornaments to claim the stolen jewellery through legal meansFour incidents in two monthsShanvar first snatched a heavy mangalsutra of 42yearold Shreeshaha Bontu near Yazoo Park in Virar West on December 17 She was alone on her scooter along a dark patch when Shanvar followed her on his sports bike and snatched the chain before disappearing in the dark ldquoIt was really good news for us A Crime Branch officer from MBVV police called up and informed us that the accused had been arrested It was unbelievable The mangalsutra was very expensive I thanked MBVV policerdquo said Bontursquos husband AnilkumarNearly a month after the first incident Shanvar robbed Neeta Ladi 38 in Virar West on January 13 ldquoI had lost all hope I am very thankful to the crime branch We have submitted our jewellery bill to the Crime Branch office for the legal process to get our jewellery backrdquo Ladi told midday The third chainsnatching incident took place in Virar West on January 25 when 28yearold Jyoti Jain lost her mangalsutra worth Rs 1 lakhldquoHats off to Crime Branch officers for catching him I saw cops working around the clock and they had scanned CCTV footage in the area but the snatcher was nowhere in the footage Still they worked hard and caught him I would request shopkeepers and housing societies to install at least one CCTV camera for your cityrsquos benefit This will really speed up the detection raterdquo Jain told midday The fourth chainsnatching took place on Jan 30 when Priyanka Manna 37 lost her gold chain worth Rs 30000 while she was on a motorcycleRs 438 lakhValue of gold police recovered