Mumbai: Three unidentified men — in the 25-35 age group — allgedly forcibly entered the sixth-floor apartment of Chanda Yadav, a 48-year-old auto rickshaw driver, in Kandivli (West) on Friday. The intruders gagged Yadav and tied a cloth to cover his eyes before fleeing with Rs 25,000 in cash. The Kandivli police said that the incident took place after the accused knocked on Yadav's door, claiming that he had parked his rickshaw incorrectly, leading to an argument before they barged into the flat.
DCP (Zone XI) Anand Bhoite said, "The three perpetrators gained access to the victim's residence by engaging in an argument over the parking of his rickshaw. The team is collecting information about the accused who have been captured in the CCTV cameras." The robbery was executed swiftly, taking only 10 minutes from beginning to end.
Yadav had collected the BC sum (chit fund) from a nearby mobile store at 7:30 am on Friday, just three-and-a-half hours before the robbery. In his complaint, Yadav said, "After collecting the money I went to an ATM to deposit the sum. However, due to some faulty in the machine I was unable to deposit the sum. So I returned home and went to sleep."
At 11 am, the accused knocked on Yadav's door, questioning him about his rickshaw's parking location. Despite Yadav's response that he had parked in a designated slot at Atul Tower, the person loudly claimed that Yadav did not know how to park properly. As Yadav attempted to close the door, three individuals forced their way inside, locked the door, and demanded the bedroom key. When Yadav tried to scream for help, one of the accused gagged him, covered his eyes with a cloth, and pushed him into the balcony before locking him inside.
After the accused left the apartment, Yadav called out for help, and the building residents came to his aid. They reviewed the CCTV footage before filing a complaint with the police. A police officer from the Kandivli police station suspects that someone aware of the money Yadav had collected from the mobile store may have committed the crime.