Two arrested for stealing CMO official's purse, mobile phone

Two members of a gang which allegedly stole the purse and mobile phone of an official in the Maharashtra Chief Minister's Office (CMO) have been arrested, police said Tuesday.

The arrested men belonged to the infamous 'Tak Tak Gang', a police official said.

The incident had taken place on September 5, when Nidhi Kamdar, an Officer on Special Duty in the CMO who handles social media, was visiting a shop near Jahangir Art Gallery in South Mumbai.

A man approached the driver of the police vehicle in which Kamdar had arrived, and told him that he had dropped money on the road, the police official said.

As the driver's attention was distracted, another man picked up Kamdar's purse which she had left behind in the vehicle and fled, he said.

Colaba police analysed CCTV footage in the area which led to the arrest of two accused in the last two days, he said.

Police recovered Kamdar's purse from them, but not her mobile phone which she had kept in it, he said.

The official did not reveal the accused's names, saying further arrests were expected in the case.

The arrested men belonged to a gang which had carried out at least ten such thefts using the same modus operandi, he said.

It acquired the name 'Tak Tak Gang' as its members knocked on vehicle's window for engaging the driver in conversation before committing theft, the official said.

Police teams have been sent outside Maharashtra to nab other members of the gang, he said.