126 old cases cracked

The police may have been unsuccessful in cracking the serial cases of rape and murder of three minor girls in Nehru Nagar so far but the investigation has helped them solve at least 126 other offences pending for several years.

The police may have been unsuccessful in cracking the serial cases of rape and murder of three minor girls in Nehru Nagar so far but the investigation has helped them solve at least 126 other offences pending for several years.

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Police sources said the cases solved include those of murder, armed robbery, molestation, theft, house break-in and chain snatching registered in Kurla, Nehru Nagar, Chembur, Mankhurd, Trombay and nearby areas.

The police said since February, when the first girl went missing from her flat in an SRA building, they have ended up cracking these unsolved cases because of increased surveillance.

The girl’s body was later found on the building's terrace. A medical examination confirmed that she had been raped.

After the second incident in March, when the body of another girl was found on the terrace of the police quarters near Nehru Nagar police station, hundreds of policemen started patrolling every nook and corner of Kurla and the surrounding area.

The police said more than 4,000 people, including history sheeters, have been questioned so far. Due to sustained investigation, most anti-social elements in the area have gone underground and the number of criminal cases has gone down, police said.

“We are questioning all the history sheeters. So it's not surprising if a few old cases get solved in the process,” said Senior Police Inspector RM Gavit of Tilak Nagar police station.

Paresh Parmar a businessman from Nehru Nagar who owns a shoe-making unit, said, "Before the police started cracking down on the anti-social elements in the area there were at least five cases of theft and robbery every day. Now that has completely stopped.”