Mumbai Crime: 21-year-old nabbed for stealing gold from senior citizens

The Government Railway Police have arrested a 21-year-old woman, who stole gold ornaments from senior citizens travelling alone in local trains. The cops have recovered gold worth Rs 3.58 lakh from her house in Ambarnath, Thane.

According to the police, the accused has been identified as Trishla Bhalerao. An investigation has revealed that earlier five cases were registered against her and for every theft, she used the same modus operandi.

Police sources said that Bhalerao first identified her target and then approached the woman with water. She would sometimes even let the person sit on her seat. Soon after initiating a conversation, she would tell her stories about jewellery thefts in trains and ask the person to remove her gold ornaments and keep them in her bag for safety reasons.

Speaking to mid-day, Santosh Dhanvate, senior inspector, said, "After the brief chat she followed the target and boarded the same train that the woman took. Then she would steal the purse in which the victim kept the gold by taking advantage of the crowd."

Sources from the crime branch revealed that Dhanvate got married a year ago, before which she used to stay in Wadala with her father. Earlier, her husband used to work as a delivery boy with an online shopping site, but later he left the job. As their financial condition worsened, she started looting people.

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