Wanowrie police solve burglary at Army Havildar’s house, recover 162 gm of stolen gold

The accused – who was on the run across multiple states – was apprehended in a dramatic overnight chase, and 162 gm of stolen gold was recovered from as far as Himachal Pradesh and Delhi

The Wanowrie police have solved a complex interstate burglary case involving the theft of gold and silver ornaments from the Pune residence of an Indian Army Havildar. The accused – who was on the run across multiple states – was apprehended in a dramatic overnight chase, and 162 gm of stolen gold was recovered from as far as Himachal Pradesh and Delhi.

The police said that Sharma’s call data records (CDRs) and location data matched with the scene of the crime at the precise time it occurred. (HT PHOTO)

According to an FIR lodged by D Vadivelu, who hails from Kerala but is currently residing at AICTC Wanowrie, unknown individuals broke into his house on March 7 while he was on duty and his wife was away from home, and stole around 210 gm (21 tola) of gold ornaments and 100 gm of silver ornaments totalling ₹1,300,000 in value.

Taking swift action, the Wanowrie police formed a dedicated investigation team and over 120 CCTV clips covering an area of over 20 km including Wanowrie Cantonment, Kondhwa, Swargate, Mangalwar Peth, Khadki, Bund Garden, Pune Station and Viman Nagar were scrutinised. Technical analysis of the mobile data including the dump data and subscriber details led the investigators to the accused identified as Amarjeet Vinod Kumar Sharma, 30, a native of Hamirpur in Himachal Pradesh. The police said that Sharma’s call data records (CDRs) and location data matched with the scene of the crime at the precise time it occurred. Further tracking revealed that the accused had moved across Delhi, Jodhpur, Ambala and other northern cities to evade arrest. The police said that the accused was working as a peon in the Indian Army but remained absent from duty.

Satyajeet Admane, senior police inspector at Wanowrie police station, said, “On March 29, 2025, Sharma’s location was traced to Bangalore, prompting the police to travel there. The very next day however, his location changed to Belgaum. The team swiftly diverted and reached Belgaum. While the accused attempted to flee to Kolhapur on a private bus, the police tracked down the specific vehicle and apprehended him near Satara on March 31.”

Sharma was taken into custody at Khandala in Satara district and subsequently brought to Wanowrie police station. While searching him, the police recovered four mobile handsets, a pant and shirt, an Army card, an Aadhar card, and an iron rod all totalling ₹23,600. A request for seven-day police custody was granted by the court to facilitate further investigation.

Dhanaji Tone, sub-inspector at Wanowrie police station, said, “During interrogation, the accused revealed that he had sold a portion of the stolen gold in Delhi and Himachal Pradesh and had pledged some of it. Following this lead, the police recovered a total 162 gm (16.2 tola) of gold from those regions.” One Karan Staryaprakash Dagar, 28, a resident of Ghorpadi and a jeweller by profession, was also arrested.

The police said that during interrogation, Sharma claimed that he had lost ₹50 lakh in an online lottery and hence was mentally disturbed and left Jodhpur in Rajasthan and headed toward the Ahmednagar Army headquarters. He said he was in dire need of money and hence by using his Army card, gained entry into the Wanowrie Army area where he carried out a two-day recce before committing the burglary at Vadivelu’s residence.

The success of the investigation was due to the relentless efforts of the Wanowrie police and timely guidance from senior officials. Lieutenant general Dhiraj Sheth, chief of southern command, heaped praise on the Pune police saying, “My trust in the Pune police has increased. I will honour your team in my office.”