Palghar: Five members of inter-state gang of robbers held

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An official on Wednesday said that the police have arrested five members of an inter-state gang of robbers days after they allegedly robbed a courier office owner of more than Rs 73,000 using weapons at Manickpur in Maharashtra's Palghar district, reported news agency PTI.

The action against the inter-state gang of robbers was taken by the Crime Detection Cell of Manickpur police under the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar police commissionerate, he said, reported PTI.

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The incident had occurred on August 19, when armed dacoits stormed into a courier office and robbed the owner of Rs 73,700 at gunpoint and using a chopper, senior inspector Raju Mane of the Manickpur police station said, reported PTI.

The police examined the footage of 100 CCTV cameras and based on technical and intelligence inputs, they initially apprehended Ajay Balram Mandal, a local resident, whose interrogation led to the arrest of other accused, he said, reported PTI.

They were identified as Shankar Gowda from Chikkamagaluru in Karnataka, Vijay Singh from Uttar Pradesh, Mohammad Shaikh from New Delhi and Lalmani Yadav from Jharkhand, he added, reported PTI.

The accused already face criminal cases in various states in India, including Karnataka, Gujarat and Maharashtra, Mane said, reported PTI.

In connection with the Manickpur incident, the police registered a case against them under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 310 (dacoity), 311 (robbery or dacoity with intent to cause death or grievous hurt), 309 (robbery), 351(2) (criminal intimidation) and others, he said.

During the investigation, the police recovered an automatic pistol, eight live rounds, a car and other material, collectively worth Rs 3.14 lakh, he said.

Petrol pump owner found dead in his car in Palghar district

In another case, the body of a petrol pump owner reported missing was found in his car abandoned on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway in Palghar district on Monday afternoon with police suspecting he was strangled to death, an official said, reported PTI.

Ramchandra Khakarani (75), a resident of Ulhasnagar in adjoining Thane district, owned a petrol pump in the Chandansar area of Palghar district and had been missing since Sunday night, he said, reported PTI.

According to the police, Khakarani left for home after collecting Rs 50,000 from his petrol pump manager on Sunday night. His driver, Mukesh Khubchandani (54), was accompanying him at the time. However, Khakarani never reached home, and his son's attempts to contact him were unsuccessful, reported PTI.

Both Khakarani's and Khubchandani's mobile phones were switched off, prompting the businessman's family to file missing person's complaints at the Naigaon police station of the Mira Bhayandar-Vasai Virar (MBVV) commissionerate, they said, reported PTI.

On Monday afternoon, Khakarani's body was discovered in his car found within Pelhar police station limits on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway and the police suspect he was strangled to death, said the official, adding his driver Khubchandani was still missing, reported PTI.

The police have sent Khakarani's body for post-mortem examination to a government hospital and registered a case of murder under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the official said.

An investigation in the case was underway, he added.

(With inputs from PTI)