04 September,2017 04:45 PM IST | Mumbai | Faisal Tandel
Justice comes full circle for two crooks who grabbed a woman's mangalsutra but lost their way and returned to the same spot in Kalyan, only to be beaten up. They were later arrested
The chain-snatchers speed away with Hemlata Singh's mangals-utra as she runs after them. Another biker witnesses this and starts chasing after the crooks
Two chain-snatchers in Kalyan quickly learnt that what goes around comes around, literally. The first-timers panicked and drove in circles before landing right in the middle of an angry mob, at the very spot they had snatched a mangalsutra from a woman. The irate crowd thrashed the duo before handing them over to the police.
The accused panic when they see people following them. They keep looking behind to see if they are being followed, and then, they take a right turn
Chain of events
Among these avenging angels was Sumedh Humne, 27, who was passing by on Chinchapada Road on Kalyan East when he saw two bike-borne people speeding away in the opposite direction, while a woman was chasing after them, shouting, 'Chor, chor!'
As their pursuers honk and yell at them, the thieves get confused. In their haste to get away, they take yet another right turn and end up at the very spot where they robbed Hemlata
"I turned my bike around and started chasing the thieves. Few other bikers also started following, and we also started shouting and honking. The crooks got scared and kept looking behind to check how many people were following them," he recalled.
A mob is already gathered there, and they pounce upon the chain-snatchers. They are roundly thrashed and then handed over to the police. Illustration/Uday Mohite
"The thieves took a right turn. Then they took another right turn. They reached the same spot where the chain-snatching had taken place. A huge crowd was gathered there, and they caught the accused and beat them up," added Humne, who left only after the police had arrested the culprits and the mangalsutra was recovered from them.
The chain was returned to the owner, Hemlata Singh, 26, a resident of Ashish Co-operative Society. She told the police that as she was exiting the society gate around noon when she felt a hand hit her shoulder from behind.
"When she turned, the accused snatched her mangalsutra and sped away on their bike. She chased after them and passers-by jumped to her rescue," said and an officer from Kolshewadi police station.
Golden noose
The accused were identified as Naveen Sharma, 25, and Bhishek Singh, 20, both residents of Kalyan. "We arrested the accused who were caught by the public on Saturday afternoon. Both of them are in custody until September 5," said Inspector Madhukar Bhoge (Crime), Kolshewadi police.
A case was registered under Sections 392 (robbery) and 34 (common intention) of the IPC. "The duo claimed that they are first-timers and were not familiar with the lay of the land. Sharma claims that he had a fabrication business but was left with a huge debt. When his creditors demanded their money back, he turned to crime. We are verifying his claim. The gold chain and some cash were seized from them," said a cop.
