Gang of 15 arrested for dacoity at senior citizen’s house in Lonavla

PUNE: A gang of 15 people was busted by Pune rural police for dacoity at an elderly couple’s house in Lonavla in the small hours of June 17

PUNE: A gang of 15 people was busted by Pune rural police for dacoity at an elderly couple’s house in Lonavla in the small hours of June 17. Valuables and cash worth ₹66,77,500 was stolen from the house of Dr Hiralal Khandelwal (73) living in Pradhan Park Society of Lonavla after tying them up, according to the police.

HT Image

The dacoity was planned and executed by a national gang whose leader has cases in Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.

The arrested were identified as gang leader Hemant Rangraj Kushwaha (24), Nathu Sadhu Deshmukh (52), Sunil Shankar Shejwal (40), Ravindra Kashiram Pawar (42), Shamsundar Shivnath Sharma (43), Mukesh Ramesh Rathod (45), Sagar Ramesh Dhotre (25), Prashant alias Hemant Rangaraj Kushwaga alias Patel (27), Dinesh Jayram Ahire (38), Vikas Shankar Gurav (34), Sanjay Bhagwan Shendage (47), Daulat Bhavsingh Patel (24), Vijay Chandraprakash Patel (21), Govind Thansingh Kushwaah (18), and Pradeep Lallu Dhanuk (28), according to the police.

The police traced CCTV camera footage and other technical methods to Lonavla, Mumbai, and Pune, to arrest the first eight accused.

“However, their interrogation had revealed that the main accused is in Madhya Pradesh, and he was in possession of the stolen valuables. A team of policemen led by sub-inspector Rameshwar Dhondge of crime branch were stationed in Madhya Pradesh for three weeks,” read a statement from the Pune rural police.

The police found five accused and two minor boys in Danbri area of Madhya Pradesh and found stolen valuables worth ₹30,52,200, including cash, jewellery, and three phones purchased using the stolen money. Inspector Dilip Pawar of Lonavla police station is investigating the case.