Attacker posed as electrician, robbed gold bangles and fled after holding her captive for the night
Fatima Yousf Jwale’s bruised face
A knife-wielding burglar, impersonating an electrician, entered the house of a senior citizen, held her hostage for eight long hours, restricted her from using the washroom, thrashed her badly, and scanned her house to extract valuables. After an overnight stay at her home, the burglar escaped with gold bangles worth R5 lakh. The accused had forced her to switch off her phone so that she may not alert anyone.
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The incident was reported on Tuesday night at Laxmi Park Devdarpan Society located at Lodha Road, Naya Nagar, Mira Road where an unknown accused possessing electrical items allegedly entered flat number 201 and robbed the gold ornaments of 72-year-old Fatima Yousf Jwale.
Fatima with her niece Sana (right) and sister Nazia (middle)
Speaking with mid-day, Jwale said, “Around 9 pm, I heard a knock at the door. When I opened it, a man wearing a black jacket and a mask was standing outside my door. He claimed to be an electrician sent by the locals since a fire had recently broken out in my house due to a short circuit.”
“I let him in and walked ahead, thinking he was genuine. Suddenly, he closed the door behind him, pulled out a knife, and pushed me into the bedroom. He demanded that I hand over any valuables, including money and jewellery. He gripped my neck with one hand and punched me with the other,” Jwale said.
The building where Fatima was staying. Pics/Hanif Patel
“I took out my four gold bracelets and handed them to him. He also snatched my mobile phone, deleted all the contacts, switched it off, and gave it back to me. After stealing my bracelet, he demanded cash. I told him I didn’t have any. He then removed his mask, ate something, and spoke softly on the phone. However, every time I moved slightly, he would get up and watch me closely. He even refused to let me go to the washroom. Around 5 am, he finally opened the door to leave. Before leaving, he threatened not to tell anyone about what had happened,” Jwala said.
Fatima's niece, Sana Shaikh, who discovered her after the assault said, “My aunt's phone was switched off, which worried me. I decided to visit the house around 11 am. When I opened the door, I was horrified to see my aunt's condition. I then called Fatima’s sister Nazia Wagle who came to the spot and informed the police.”
Sana shared that the society building has around nine flats, but there are no security guard. “At night, the main gate is usually locked. Because of the gate locked the accused stayed inside the house the entire night and escaped in the morning.”
Another relative said, “If crimes are happening even inside homes, how can anyone feel safe? Many people live alone, while others have family members who work or are often away. My aunt is already a heart and diabetes patient. Incidents like these only make people lose faith in the police.”
“We have registered a case under Section 309(6) of BNS and investigation is underway,” said senior inspector Amar Jagdale of Naya Nagar police station.
Fatima has three sisters and a brother. Fatima and one of her sisters never married. The third sister has two daughters, one of whom was Sana Shaikh.
72
Age of the victim Fatima Yousf Jwale
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