01 March,2016 02:30 PM IST | | Shiva Devnath
Woman arrested by Oshiwara cops on Sunday evening claims she has lost count of her victims; she would work for just a couple of days in various households and then decamp with valuables
Luck ran out for a 30-year-old con woman after she was nabbed in Oshiwara on Sunday. With her arrest, at least 40 cases of thefts are likely to be solved across Western suburbs.
Deepa has many cases registered against her in the Western suburbs
The woman, currently identified as Deepa, has been stealing from her employers for the last three years and has amassed booty - cash and jewellery - worth Rs 2 crore. Cops say she has at least two to three cases registered against her at various police stations across Western suburbs. Some of Deepa's targets include Marathi film actress Dipali Sayyed, a Bollywood actor and a renowned businessman.
An officer from Oshiwara police station said they suspect that Deepa may not be her real name, as she has used fake identities in the past. A few of the names she used include Deepa, Sangeeta, Narmada and Geeta.
After receiving numerous complaints against the con artist, various police stations in the Western suburbs circulated her photograph across various societies. Cops asked the members to stay alert and inform them the moment they spot her.
Another officer said an Oshiwara family was interviewing Deepa for the job of a domestic help on Saturday evening. However, one of the male members of the family got suspicious and informed the police claiming that a woman resembling the one in the photograph circulated by them was at his residence. Cops reached the society with one of the complainants, who identified Deepa.
Deepa confessed to her crimes during interrogation and said she has lost count of her victims. She claimed to have made about Rs 2 crore via thievery. Oshiwara cops revealed that Deepa has four cases registered against her at their police station.
Explaining her modus operandi, Senior Inspector Subhash Khadtare said, "She wouldn't work for more than two to three days in houses where she was asked to submit documents like address proof and photo identity.
She would dillydally for a couple of days before making away with the booty on the third or fourth day. While Deepa spent most of the stolen money, she mortgaged jewellery across various jewellery stores in the suburbs. We have initiated the recovery process. We request people not to hire anyone, even on hourly-basis, without seeking their documents in advance."
Friends in con
Oshiwara police arrested another woman named Sunita, who was with Deepa at the time of her interview. Sunita is wanted for stealing Rs 40 lakh from the residence of her previous employer in Amboli. "We booked Deepa and Sunita under relevant sections of the IPC. Sunita was handed over to the Amboli police. Deepa was produced in the court, which remanded her in police custody," said PSI Vijay Chauhan from Oshiwara police station.
