Mumbai: Maid who robs and disappears held for 30th time in Govandi

32-year-old woman joins only affluent households, where on day one of her job, she steals cash and jewellery and never returns; latest case is of a Rs 5-lakh theft at Juhu professor's home

Vanita alias Aasha Shailendra Gaikwad, 32, an intrepid thief, has been caught 30 times for robbing her employers' homes. On Wednesday, she was caught for the 30th time for robbing the home of a professor from a reputable Mumbai college back in January this year. After three months on the run, she was finally arrested from Govandi.

Gaikwad's life of crime started 18 years ago, when she was just 14, and her modus operandi is to rob her employers on the very first day on the job, the police said. She mostly targets wealthy homeowners in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region - Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai.

Modus Operandi

The police said Gaikwad would approach the watchmen of random buildings in the city and ask them whether anyone there was looking for a maid. She would then share her number with the guard and request him to introduce her to the person concerned. Once introduced, Gaikwad would fix a date to start working. And, every single time, on the very first day, she would steal ornaments and cash and never return. Gaikwad is a mother of three, two of whom live with her estranged husband and one with her mother. In 2007, she gave birth to a child while in Byculla jail.

An officer said, "She is so wily, that whenever her employers ask for her documents for police verification, she would tell them she would bring them in a day or two and disappear on day one itself."

Pleading guilt

According to the police, whenever she was produced before court, she would plead guilty in front of the magistrate, knowing she could get away with minimum punishment if found guilty and save on advocate fees and bail bond money. The court sometimes lets off special cases only on surety.

Latest case

In the latest case, the FIR was registered in January this year at Santacruz police station by a woman professor who lives in a plush society in Santacruz. She told the police that her maid, who had been introduced to her by a watchman, disappeared after day one and also stole jewellery worth R5 lakh from her house.

Ever since, Investigating officer API Suresh Valvi and his team had been searching for her. It was a touch search as Gaikwad used to change both her location as well as her cellphone numbers all the time. On Wednesday evening, Valvi got a tip-off from his sources, and Gaikwad was caught from Lallu Bhai Compound in Govandi. Senior PI Shriram Koregaonkar of Santacruz police station, said, "The accused has been arrested under section 381 (theft by clerk or servant of property in possession of master) of IPC, further investigation in the matter is underway."

Seven months ago, in September 2018, she was arrested by the Khar police after robbing a newly married woman in Khar. She stole gold ornaments worth R4 lakh from the house. The police later arrested her from Navi Mumbai.

An officer from Santacuruz Police has said, "We are in the process of getting details of undetected cases in 2019 where her modus operandi has been used to steal jewellery and cash." DCP Paramjit Singh Dahiya said, "We are probing to see if she is involved in other similar cases registered across the city."

ExpertSpeak

Advocate Falguni Brahmbhatt said, "If the accused is a habitual offender, then the prosecution should oppose his/her bail application strongly by convincing the court that if the accused is out on bail then the chances of such a person indulging in more such offences are higher. After being granted bail and being aware that he or she is likely to get bail, they tend to indulge in the same offences and become habitual offenders. Also, in such circumstances, being aware of the fact that they may be released on bail, they plead guilty as they get benefits such as minimum quantum of punishment."

How did Gaikwad get off lightly each time?

The accused pleads guilty before the magistrate court in her very first remand, which is one of the strongest grounds to get bail early even if the offence is non-bailable. Apart from this, Gaikwad used to convince the court that she had nobody to take care of her three children as her husband is estranged. This is another strong reason for her being granted bail.

Registered cases

Juhu police station: 9 cases, from 2011 to 2016
Santacruz police station: 3 cases, from 2010 to 2019
Khar police station: 7 cases, 2010 to 2018
Bandra police station: 2 cases, 2011 and 2017
Versova police station: 3 cases, 2014 to 2016
DN Nagar police station: 1 case in 2016
Oshiwara police station: 2 cases, 2012 and 2016
Byculla police station: 1 case in 2016
Marine Drive police station: 1 case in 2016
Tardeo police station: 1 case in 2010
Total number of registered cases: 30
The police said this number could go above 100 after they check other detected cases before 2010.

Also Read: Mumbai: Two 'maids' held for stealing Rs 12 lakh from Matunga resident

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