With the arrest of six robbers, including a woman, police today claimed to have busted an inter-state criminal gang which daringly carried out daylight break-ins in flats at city's high-rises without security guards and CCTVs.
The arrest of Hajeed Ali Baig (41), the kingpin of the gang, along with a firearm from suburban Goregaon on September 3 led investigators to uncover its activities, police said.
By busting the gang, the police claimed to have solved 27 burglary cases reported in Mumbai. The group's role is suspected in another 23 cases in the city and as many as 20 house break-ins reported in other parts of Maharashtra besides Gujarat, Goa and Silvassa, police said.
Gold ornaments weighing 2.18 kg, valued at about Rs 54.40 lakh, were recovered from the gang members.
Baig, who had been leading a luxurious life, even started a jewellery business in a bid to dispose the stolen booty to jewellers at Zaveri Bazaar here, said Sadanand Date, Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime).
Baig's jewellery business partner Vinod Kumar Sanghvi (38) and his sister Mehrunisa Sayyed (42), who were part of the racket, were apprehended on September 7 and 16 respectively, he said.
On September 13, the custody of three other members of the gang -- Kailash More (32), Deepak Mishra (22) and Sanjay Kamade (25) who were jailed in Dhule in North Maharashtra - was taken by Crime Branch for questioning, he added.
"Baig was found to be involved in over 122 house break-in cases in Pune before 2008. He had been then arrested and imprisoned. He walked out of jail in 2012 after completing his sentence," Date said.
Despite serving a jail term, Baig remained in the business of crime and this time targeted Mumbai and other parts of the State, besides cities in Gujarat, Silvassa and Goa, he said.
Ganging up with the five others, including his elder sister, Baig surveyed various buildings in the city in his car and zeroed on those without CCTVs or security guards.
Explaining the modus operandi, Date said "the gang members would go to the top floor of a building and then knock the door or press the door bell of each house. If there was no response from inside, they would break-in and make off with valuables.
