Electrician arrested for stealing gold worth ₹20 lakh after piggy bank half-emptied

The man gave some of the gold to a jeweller in Thane, asking him to melt the jewellery and make a gold chain with a new design. And some of the gold he kept in one of his colleague’s bags

Mumbai: An electrician was arrested in connection with a burglary of gold worth ₹20 lakh. The theft came to light when the owner discovered that a piggy bank, where children put coins had been half-emptied. When he checked the cupboard for the jewellery, it was gone and he reported the theft to the cops.

The jewellery, around 506 grams worth ₹20.24 lakh was in a small bag which was kept in the cupboard and was not locked (Stock Pic)

The Navghar police arrested the accused, identified as Ravikant Vishwakarma, 33, a resident of Kalwa in Thane. According to the police, the victim, Ravikiran Naik, a businessman, stays on the first floor of a building in the Tata colony area, Mulund (East). Naik has given a contract for his house renovation work to one of his childhood friends Bhupendra Ratnam. Naik had rented a flat on the same floor in the building, where he was staying.

The wiring work was given to Vishwakarma by Ratnam. The jewellery, around 506 grams worth ₹20.24 lakh was in a small bag which was kept in the cupboard and was not locked. The piggy bank was kept in the hall and it was almost full, but on March 20, when Naik visited the house to check the pending work, found that the piggy bank had been half-emptied, said assistant police inspector Yogesh Patil, an investigating officer.

Naik then rushed to the room to check for the gold jewellery. When the bag was missing, Naik asked his family members and kids and immediately sensed a foul-play. He then approached the Navghar police station. Subsequent to the complaint, around seven to eight workers were brought to the police station for inquiry. After several hours of questioning, Vishwakarma confessed that he had taken the gold jewellery from the cupboard.

Patil said that he gave some of the gold to a jeweller in Thane, asking him to melt the jewellery and make a gold chain with a new design. And some of the gold he kept in one of his colleague’s bags. Police recovered some of the jewellery on March 25 and the rest were recovered later from the Jeweller in Thane. Police added that they were unable to ascertain who had stolen money from the piggy bank which led to the discovery of the theft.