Mumbai Crime: Thief evading arrest for 17 years finally gets caught

The thief, Attaulla alias Raju Khan

Cops have nabbed a thief who evaded arrest for nearly 17 years. The accused, identified as Attaulla alias Raju Mustafa Khan, is a resident of Qureshi Nagar, Kurla. A property dispute between Attaulla and his brother led to his arrest. However, when cops produced him in the court on Saturday, he was fined R500 and set free.

Attaulla stole a water motor pump from an electrical goods shop in Kismat Nagar, Kurla, in 1994, after which he was arrested and charge sheeted by police. Although the trial went on till the 1999, Attaulla stopped attending court proceedings abruptly and was declared absconding in June 1999. Since then, he had been on the run, evading arrest.

Location change
Soon after he was declared absconding, Attaulla left Kurla and settled in Malwani, where he got married. Since he didn't keep in touch with anyone, not even his family members knew that he had a family and a home in the same city. Over time, his mother passed away and, two years ago, his father expired, but he didn't return home. Attaulla took up a job in a factory and started working as a daily wage earner.

Property row
Following his father's death, a dispute arose regarding the family's ancestral property, to which Attaulla claimed his share and started threatening his brother. But when his brother didn't give in to Attaulla's demands, he returned to Kurla to meet him. Soon after, neighbours alerted Kurla police.

In police net
On being informed, cops revisited Attaulla's case and found he had been absconding for 17 years. "He had been charged under Section 379 of the Indian Penal Code for stealing. After confirming that he's an absconding criminal, we laid down a trap and nabbed Attaulla from Malwani Gate No. 2 on Friday," said Sadanand Rane, Police Inspector (Crime) Kurla police station told mid-day.

Another police official added, "We produced him before the Kurla Metropolitan magistrate on Saturday. But he was fined Rs 500 rupees as penalty and allowed to go. The case as we know now has been closed."

According to police sources, Attaulla had been living in Malwani with his family over 20 years.