Mumbra resident arrested for Navi Mumbai house break-ins

An inter-state investigation by the central unit of the crime branch has resulted in recovering goods worth ₹60 lakh, stolen by an accused in a series of house break-ins in Navi Mumbai.

NAVI MUMBAI: An inter-state investigation by the central unit of the crime branch has resulted in recovering goods worth ₹60 lakh, stolen by an accused in a series of house break-ins in Navi Mumbai.

Mumbra resident arrested for Navi Mumbai house break-ins

Between November and December 2024, a series of house burglary cases were reported in and around Airoli and APMC region. A case was registered with Airoli police on December 7, 2024, and a joint inspection was undertaken by the local police and crime branch to crack the cases.

The accused, identified as Asif Nahir Shaikh, 41, was traced and arrested in Karnataka last week. “Shaikh was previously employed as a carpenter. However, since the pandemic, he started committing burglaries. He was about to close a land deal with the cash he got after selling some of the valuables in Karnataka when the team nabbed him,” said DCP Amit Kale.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the loot from the burglaries were transported in stolen motorcycles with fake registration plates. The accused used to wear a helmet to hide his face from CCTV cameras.

“Two teams were formed to search for the accused. Inquiries confirmed that the accused was a resident of Mumbra and that he had fled the city,” Kale said.

Shaikh was nabbed from his in-laws’ house in Gulbarga in Karnataka. During interrogation, he admitted to committing seven burglaries in Navi Mumbai. The recovered items include: 500 grams of gold ornaments, 3.2 kilograms of silver ornaments, ₹16 lakh in cash, two motorcycles, three laptops and one iPhone.

He was produced in court last week, which remanded him in police custody for nine days