Thieves threaten residents, steal sandalwood tree from Pune’s Market Yard area

Thieves attacked residents with stones when the latter chased the car used by them to flee with the stolen wood

Close on the heels of a 70-year-old sandalwood tree stolen from a bungalow in Deccan by threatening its owners, another incident of theft was reported from an Adarshnagar housing society at Market Yard Thursday midnight.

The citizens alerted the police who reached the spot within a few minutes. However, the residents claimed that the police could have nabbed the thieves if they had carried out nakabandi in the area. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO)

Thieves attacked residents with stones when the latter chased the car used by them to flee with the stolen wood.

According to the residents, they have employed three watchmen with one posted at the main gate and two on patrol duty. The accused came on three two-wheelers and a car. The thieves held a patrol guard at knife point and within four minutes chopped the sandalwood tree using an electric axe. However, the residents woke up to the thud of the tree fall. They saw the accused flee with the tree trunk in a car and chased them. The smugglers attacked them with stones and fled.

The citizens alerted the police who reached the spot within a few minutes. However, the residents claimed that the police could have nabbed the thieves if they had carried out nakabandi in the area.

Meanwhile, sandalwood thieves had targeted the bungalow of Anagha Prabhakar Paralikar on August 10 and fled with trunk worth ₹50,000 after threatening family members with weapons.