Shopkeeper held for coercing 11-year-old to steal jewellery from his house

After getting to know that the boy’s father had purchased gold and silver jewellery for his sister’s wedding, the accused forced the boy to steal it for him

MUMBAI: A 21-year-old stationery shopkeeper from Marine Lines was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly coercing an 11-year-old boy to steal gold and silver jewellery from his home and hand it over to him.

Shopkeeper held for coercing 11-year-old to steal jewellery from his house

According to the police, the accused Deepak Veeram Choudhary befriended the minor, who frequently visited his stationery shop, and eventually asked him about valuables kept at his house. After getting to know that the boy’s father had purchased gold and silver jewellery for his sister’s wedding, Choudhary forced the boy to steal it for him.

“On December 12, the boy’s father, Muniraj Singh, a paper bag manufacturer, discovered that the jewellery was missing. When he questioned his wife and she broke down, the boy panicked and told them that a shopkeeper had forced him to steal the jewellery and give it to him,” said a police officer.

Subsequently, Singh approached the police on Monday. “On December 5, the boy took the jewellery, worth approximately ₹22.88 lakh, from the locker, carried it in his school bag and handed it over to Choudhary,” the officer added.

On Monday, a case was registered against Choudhary under Section 308 (extortion) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 83 (use of a child for criminal activities) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, and he was arrested on Tuesday.