Mumbai: Driver flees with Rs 25 lakh cash from employer’s car, arrested

Kherwadi police station officers pose with accused Gurudev Subhash Patil

The Kherwadi police in Bandra have arrested a car driver for stealing Rs 25 lakh in cash from his employer. Police said they were able to recover Rs 23.72 lakh from the accused.

Gurudev Subhash Patil, 42, was arrested from Thane railway station, said police. The arrest came following a complaint filed by Naved Mohammad Siddiqui, 46, a developer from Bandra. Police said that the accused had been working as Siddqui's driver for the past 10 months.

The matter came to light on February 20, when Siddiqui, along with his friend Gaurav Arora, had gone to the MHADA office in Bandra, leaving Patil in charge of the vehicle, which had cash inside. However, when he returned after some time, both Patil and the car were missing.

According to Siddiqui, he phoned Patil, but it was switched off. Later, Siddiqui's office staff informed him that the car was parked near Adani Electricity in Kherwadi, but the bag containing the cash was missing. Suspecting that Patil had stolen the money, Siddiqui approached Kherwadi police station and filed a complaint.

Based on the complaint, an investigation led by ACP Prakash Chougule was launched. "During the probe, we found that Patil had a criminal background with multiple cases registered against him. We traced his old mobile number and discovered that he was frequently changing locations," said a police officer.

Using technical analysis of Patil's mobile and IMEI number, police learned that he was heading towards Thane. Acting swiftly, a police team intercepted him and arrested him at the railway station. "We have recovered R23.72 lakh from Patil. He was presented before the local court in Bandra, which remanded him to police custody for further investigation," the officer added.