A series of burglaries occurred at the home of a lawyer in Dadar East, with five thefts taking place in 15 days, the Bombay High Court was informed on Friday. During the hearing, the senior inspector of Matunga police station appeared and assured that efforts were on to identify those behind the thefts in the Hindu Colony area.
The case came to the attention of the court through a petition filed by advocate Dhrutiman Joshi, who said that since August 15, thieves had stolen various items from his house, including gas cylinders, utensils and door locks. Josh, whose family has lived in the building since 1938, explained that the house is now dilapidated and he and his family have moved to a nearby building. Despite this, items left in the old house are frequently stolen.
Joshi further claimed that when he reported the theft, the police initially laughed at him, saying such incidents were common in abandoned houses. Joshi alleged that though an FIR was registered, the police failed to record a statement or conduct a proper investigation. He also mentioned that similar break-ins had occurred at his neighbor’s house.
Additional public prosecutor VN Sagare, representing the Mumbai Police, told the court that CCTV footage of the area had been reviewed and a number of suspicious persons had been identified. Police confirmed that three FIRs have been registered and investigation is ongoing.
A bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Prithviraj Chavan adjourned the hearing to October 25 and directed the police to provide an update on the progress of the investigation.