Pune Police have arrested a 34-year-old man from Uttar Pradesh and recovered gold jewellery, a mobile phone and other items valued at ₹21.21 lakh while solving 13 chain-snatching and mangalsutra-theft cases reported in crowded public places across the city. Police said the accused allegedly operated with five associates who targeted devotees during festivals and processions.
The investigation began after a theft reported during a Ganesh immersion procession near Belbag Chowk on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Road in the Budhwar Chowk area on September 25. According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 1) Krushikesh Rawale, the complainant, Sagar Prakash Komati, was watching the procession with his friend Vikrant Shinde at about 10.45 pm when a group of six men allegedly surrounded them.
Police said one member of the group took a Samsung mobile phone from Komati’s trouser pocket while others assaulted him. The group allegedly threatened him with a knife and used an iron cutter to remove a gold chain from his neck. The chain weighed 38.320 grams and was valued at ₹1,21,476, while the mobile phone was valued at ₹25,000. The reported loss in that incident was ₹1,46,476.
The accused was identified as Vijaypal Kawar Sain, a resident of Islamapur Ghasoli in Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh. Senior Police Inspector Sandeep Deshmane, who heads Faraskhana police station, said police head constable Gajanan Sonune and constable Chetan Holkar received information that the suspect was linked to a gang from Shamli district.
After Sain was detained and questioned, police said he admitted involvement in the procession-related case and identified five other alleged associates. A police team travelled to Uttar Pradesh and recovered 139.720 grams of gold jewellery, the mobile phone reported stolen from Komati, a sharp knife and an iron cutter.
“The total value of the seized property is ₹21,21,100. The investigation solved the case registered in Pune and 12 other cases, for a total of 13 chain-snatching and mangalsutra-theft cases,” DCP Rawale said.
The case was investigated under the guidance of Additional Commissioner of Police Rajesh Bansode, DCP Rawale and Assistant Commissioner of Police Sachin Hire of the Faraskhana division. The investigation team included officers and personnel from Faraskhana police station and the division’s crime investigation units.
The police account places the alleged offences in crowded settings such as religious processions and other festival gatherings, where dense movement can make thefts and rapid escape more difficult for victims and organisers to detect. The recovered knife and iron cutter have also been taken into custody as part of the investigation. Police proceedings against the arrested accused and the alleged associates will continue according to the case records.
