Rohit Verma waits for cops to release stolen couture

Days before curtains go up on the spring/summer Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week in Delhi, cops here have sprung an obstacle for fashion designer Rohit Verma. For the past two months, all Verma has done is wait for his designer wear -- stolen, later recovered -- to be released from police custody, so that he can spruce them up for the ramp.

Spangle in his works: Rohit Verma, seen here at his Santacruz store, says his visits to the Santacruz police station have been fruitless

The five saris that cost Rs 1.15 lakh each, were stolen from his Santacruz store allegedly by his security guard on July 17. Days later, Verma got a call from a taxi driver in Powai who said he had some saris with Verma's label on them that had been sold to him by a man for a paltry amount. The cabbie had read in the papers about the theft and called up the designer to confirm if they were the creations stolen from his store.

"This happened on July 23 after I had lodged a complaint with the Santacruz police. I went to the police station and handed over to them, the dresses the taxi driver had returned, to help out in the investigations," said Verma.

A few days later, court formalities approved the return of the stolen property to the owner. But the police officers have not yet given him back the couture garments. Whenever Verma approaches the police, he returns empty-handed as the officer concerned is absent, he said.

When contacted Senior Inspector Arun Chavan of Santacruz police station said, "I will find out about the dresses and return them within a few days."

CCTV shows guard stealing clothes
On July 17, when fashion designer Rohit Verma entered his store at 11 am, saris worth Rs 8 lakh, his sister Anupama's laptop, iPad, and some diamond jewellery were missing. CCTV cameras inside the shop recorded the entire episode, and the footage showed the store's security guard Akash Singh making off with the booty.

Verma had hired Singh from Global Security two days before the theft. As soon as Rohit and Anupama discovered the theft, they raised an alarm and called up Global Security.

On the day of his hiring, Singh was asked to submit his identity and address details, but he robbed the store and fled before that. The designer only knew that he was from somewhere in Rajasthan.u00a0