Mumbai: Auto drivers assault biker, rob gold chain

A man was allegedly assaulted and robbed of his gold chain in Chembur by autorickshaw drivers, while he was riding a motorcycle with his fiancée seated pillion, in the early hours of Tuesday.

A man was allegedly assaulted and robbed of his gold chain in Chembur by autorickshaw drivers, while he was riding a motorcycle with his fiancée seated pillion, in the early hours of Tuesday.

Chain-snatching

One of the accused was held by the public and handed over to the police, while two others were arrested later. According to the police, Vishwajeet Pawar, 30, a Ghatkopar resident, was riding a motorcycle with his fiancée Sangeeta Karande, to drop her home.

“While they were driving on the Santacruz-Chembur link road at Tilak Nagar around 12.45am, three autorickshaw drivers picked a fight with Pawar, accusing him of not letting them pass,” said Bhagwat Sonawane, senior inspector, Tilak Nagar police station.

The argument soon escalated into a scuffle. The three people in the rickshaw accosted the motorcycle near a signal. Pawar was assaulted and abused, and his gold chain weighing 15 grams and worth Rs25,000 was allegedly stolen.

The couple raised an alarm, following which one of the accused was caught with the help of passers-by. The accused was taken to Kurla police station, and subsequently to Tilak Nagar police station. The accused rickshaw drivers – Imran Sajjad, 21, who was driving the rickshaw, and his accomplices Mohammed Khan, 22, and Rajkumar Jaiswal, 22, were arrested. The police have also seized the autorickshaw used in the crime.