Mumbai Crime: Domestic help held for stealing from employer

She was arrested as her daughter had spoken of 'joyous' vacation when she gifted gold chains to her and relatives in their village

The Bangur Nagar police on July 2 arrested a 32-year-old domestic help for allegedly stealing gold biscuits, diamond rings, and foreign currency, all worth about Rs 21.5 lakh from her NRI employer's house. It was the help's daughter's innocent revelation about enjoying their vacation in their village when she bought her and other relatives gold chains, that helped nail the accused.

The accused has been identified as Rajeeta Narsayya Mengu. The police have been able to recover the gold biscuits and some other valuables worth about Rs 19 lakh from her village in Telangana.

According to police sources, complainant Ramni Ayyer, 60, stays with his wife and 83-old-mother at Bangur Nagar. In the same locality, his younger brother Kumar Subramaniyam Ayer who is an NRI, has a house. Kumar's foreign currency and valuables were also kept in Ayyer's house. As Kumar is currently in Mumbai, he has hired two domestic help.

The theft

Mengu works for both brothers. Ayyer used to keep the valuables, documents and money inside his cupboard locker. In March when he needed some documents, he had opened the locker and seen all his valuables there. On June 29 when he opened the safe again, he found jewellery, gold biscuits and other valuables worth Rs 21.5 lakh missing. He inquired with the family members and domestic help, who denied knowing anything about this. He then lodged a complaint with Bangur Nagar police.

The police questioned Mengu and the other domestic help. Mengu said she had gone to her village in April and returned recently. "However, Ayyer's mother had once asked Mengu’s daughter what she did in their village during the vacation. Mengu’s daughter had told her she enjoyed a lot and her mother bought gold chains for her grandmother and relatives and made a gold chain for her too," said an officer from the Bangur Nagar police station.

Ayyer's family also found that recently Mengu had started repairs of her house and wondered how she had got all this money suddenly.

She confesses

The police then questioned Mengu and she confessed to the theft. She was arrested. The police recovered the gold worth Rs 19 lakh from the jeweller to whom she had sold the valuables.

"We have arrested Mengu on charges of theft," said Senior Police Inspector Shobha Pise from the Bangur Nagar police station.

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