Man held in Rs 1.31 crore Borivali gold heist case

A 32-year-old man was arrested on Saturday in connection with the theft of gold ornaments and cash worth Rs 1.31 crore from a shop in Borivali, police said. The accused, Manish Devilal Darji, is suspected to be the kingpin of "Bhinmal" gang which had committed similar crimes by targetting jewellers in Mumbai and Thane, an official said.

Darji and his aides had allegedly looted the jewelry shop located in Borivali (west) in April 2017 when its owner was away. "They had stolen cash and gold ornaments worth Rs 1.31 crore by giving sedatives to the wife of the shop owner," he said.

Members of the gang are known for their unique modus operandi wherein one of them would work as a servant at the jewellery shop they wanted to target and would gradually earn the trust of its owner, the official said. The gang member would then get duplicate keys of the cash vault made.

"He would then offer sedatives to other employees and family members of the jeweller. Once they are asleep, he would let his accomplices inside the shop and they would loot the shop," he explained. Darji, who had been on the run for more than two years, recently returned to the city from Rajasthan and started living in western suburbs, the official said..