16 October,2023 05:48 AM IST | Mumbai | Shirish Vaktania
The accused and the recovered motorcycles at the Andheri police station
Three friends who had come to Mumbai from Chittorgarh, Rajasthan with the intention of stealing Royal Enfield Bullet motorcycles have been apprehended by the Andheri police. Two stolen bikes have been recovered from them. The police revealed that the accused had been in Mumbai and Pune for the past month, earning a living selling pani puri and working as cooks.
The trio, Ramesh Menaria, 31; Himmat Gujjar, 32; and Hiralal Ahir, 24, badly wanted to acquire three Bullets by hook or by crook, and after several unsuccessful attempts, finally succeeding in stealing one at Marine Drive and another at Andheri.
A police officer said, "In August, they arrived in Mumbai and they stole a bike near the Western Express Highway after breaking the lock. Two of them transported the vehicle back to their village. The accused also sold pani puri in Mumbai. In their desire to acquire two more bikes, they returned to Mumbai in September and stole another bike at Marine Drive, subsequently taking it back to Rajasthan."
Meanwhile, the Andheri police examined CCTV footage from railway stations, scrutinising over 250 camera recordings to track down the culprits.
Senior Inspector Santaji Ghorpade formed a team, comprising API Shashikant Bhosale, PI Dahifale, PSI Kishor Parkale and Constables Pednekar, Suryavanshi, Sonje, Jadhav, Londhe, Kapse, More and Pisal to apprehend the accused.
The police received information about Menaria's location in the Tardeo area and successfully arrested him on Friday. With Menaria's assistance, the two other accused, Gujjar and Ahir, were apprehended in Pune on Sunday.
PSI Kishor Parkale of the Andheri police station said, "The accused are residents of Rajasthan. They confessed that their obsession with Royal Enfield Bullets drove them to steal vehicles in Mumbai and transport them to Rajasthan. We have recovered two stolen bikes from their residences."
