Man claiming to be victim of theft arrested for same crime

In a twist to a robbery case where a 29-year-old office assistant had claimed to have been robbed of Rs. 55 lakh by four persons in south Mumbai, the DB Marg police on Wednesday arrested the office assistant himself for committing the crime.

In a twist to a robbery case where a 29-year-old office assistant had claimed to have been robbed of Rs. 55 lakh by four persons in south Mumbai, the DB Marg police on Wednesday arrested the office assistant himself for committing the crime.

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Bhaskar More, who worked at a builder’s office for nine years, told police he stole to fund his sister-in-law’s cancer treatment and repay a home loan.

On Monday evening, More was headed to a client’s office in Bhuleshwar to deposit Rs. 55 lakh on behalf of his employers. A few hours later, he told his employers he was overpowered in a taxi by four men, who escaped with the money.

Additional commissioner of police (south region) Krishna Prakash said police suspected More right from the start. More said he got into an argument with the driver of the first taxi he hired, so he tried to hire a private vehicle, in which he was robbed.

“When we asked why he approached a private vehicle when he was hardly 200m away from his destination, he started giving vague answers. He could not answer several other questions as well,” Prakash said.

After a sustained interrogation, More confessed.

“He said he needed Rs. 10 lakh to pay the medical expenses of his sister-in-law. He also required Rs. 5 lakh for a home loan installment. We are verifying if his claims are true,” said Nisar Tamboli, zonal deputy commissioner.

More said he actually went to Dombivli, where he gave the money to his father-in-law, claiming there was an income tax raid on his office and the money belonged to his owners, police said. He asked his father-in-law to take the money to their native place in Ratnagiri.

The police are trying to determine if More had an accomplice. He was produced before the local court and has been remanded in police custody till March 18. The police have recovered the money.