01 October,2015 03:00 PM IST | | Samiullah Khan
The shopkeeper ran after one of the robbers who had snatched three gold chains; when the store owner grabbed him by the collar, the thief fired at him and escaped on his accomplice’s bike
A Virar-based jeweller was shot at by some unidentified robbers on Tuesday night. The victim has been identified as Kishan Singh Kharwad (32), owner of Mahalaxmi Jewellers.
Two persons had targeted the jewellery shop. Pic/Hanif Patel
The incident took place Tuesday evening at around 8:30 pm at Sainath Nagar, Virar (East). One of the unknown accused, around 20-25 years old, stepped into the jewellery shop, Mahalaxmi Jewellers, and asked to be shown some gold chains. Kharwad was showing him the chains, when he snatched three of them and fled from the shop. He ran towards his accomplice, who was waiting outside on his bike, wearing a helmet.
Kharwad chased the first robber till outside the shop, and grabbed him by the collar. That's when the robber pulled out a firearm and shot Kharwad, who suffered two bullet injuries. The thieves succeeded in escaping from the spot. Another jeweller, who owns a shop in the same area, rushed to Kharwad's rescue and took him to Sanjivani Hospital, Virar. Kharwad was later shifted to JJ Hospital, where he is battling for his life. A probe is on to nab the accused.
According to Shekhar, an eyewitness, Kharwad had tried to catch one of the two accused who were on the bike. "The accused, in fear of getting caught, fired a bullet at Kharwad. The accused pushed him and later fired in the air and escaped from the spot," said Shekhar.
According to Deputy
SP Bajirao Bhosle, the robbers had entered Mahalaxmi Jewellers around 9 pm. "After snatching three gold chains from the shop, the accused were trying to escape. When the owner tried to follow them, one of them opened fire at him," said Bhosle.
"Two bullets hit the owner - one on his right shoulder and another on his left. We have recovered two cartridges from the spot. We are going through the CCTV footage to identify the accused. Five teams have been formed to catch the culprits," Bhosle added.
