07 August,2017 07:45 PM IST | Mumbai | Suraj Ojha
Every member of this family, even a minor, pitches in to run the household. But, the band of four -- a mother and her three sons -- resort to thieving. The Nehru Nagar police busted the gang and arrested all four
Video grabs of Rekha's sons stealing from sleeping people at stations and on street
Every member of this family, even a minor, pitches in to run the household. But, the band of four -- a mother and her three sons -- resort to thieving. The Nehru Nagar police busted the gang and arrested all four yesterday.
The main accused has been identified as a divorcee, Rekha Gawli, 48. According to police sources, the family serves the city as rag pickers during the daytime, but they turn thieves at night.
"Rekha taught her sons, including a teenager, how to steal wallets and other belongings. While the minor is 17 years old, the other two sons have been identified as Vinayak, 23, and Lalla, 25," an officer said.
Rekha came into the spotlight after the victims of her robbery attempts filed a case with the Nehru Nagar police in February.
"She surreptitiously entered a house in the locality in February and stole goods worth over R40,000. We had launched a search operation for her the same month, but were unable to trace Rekha, as she, usually, lets her sons do the thieving. On Sunday, we received a tip-off about her whereabouts, and we laid a trap to nab her," the officer said.
Rekha Gawli came into the spotlight in February
The police said that while Rekha is wanted in very few cases, her sons have been booked for several thefts across the city. The officer said, "Rekha's sons mostly target railway commuters. The minor had attacked a cop once while the latter was chasing him. Twice the Kurla Government Railway Police (GRP) arrested him. The Wadala GRP nabbed Vinayak for theft at the railway station some months ago, but he was released on bail. The Kurla GRP wants him in four similar cases. Kalyan GRP officers have cases against Lalla."
