Two Chinese ‘jewel thieves’ now held in Rs 2.6 lakh diamond theft case

MUMBAI: Two

Chinese nationals

who were arrested and lodged in Thane prison for allegedly stealing a Rs 34 lakh diamond from a

gem expo

, were arrested in another theft case late on Thursday. Police said Jiang Changquing (47) and Deng Xiaobo (45) had stolen one more diamond, worth Rs 2.6 lakh, at the same expo in Goregaon (E) on July 31. They will now be produced before a magistrate’s court in Borivli on Friday.

“On August 1, a magistrate’s court had granted the duo bail in connection with the Rs 34 lakh

diamond theft

. The duo was to pay Rs 15,000 each on a personal bond. But before they could be released from Thane prison, we submitted an application to the court that they were also involved in the theft of a Rs 2.6 lakh diamond,” a police officer said. The court went through the application on Thursday and gave a go-ahead to the police. The two accused will be interrogated about their backgrounds, where have they committed similar crimes in the past and whether they are a part of an organized syndicate of diamond thieves.

The India International Jewellery Show-2017 was held at Bombay Exhibition Centre in Goregaon (E) from July 27 to 31. Changquing and Xiaobo flew into India on July 30 and visited the show on July 31 post noon. They first allegedly stole a diamond worth Rs 2.6 lakh from a Jaipur-based exhibitor’s stall and then stole another diamond worth Rs 34 lakh from a stall put up by P Kirtilal and Co. They replaced the second diamond with a fake and exited the venue at 3.24pm. The stall executive sensed something amiss and informed his employer after verifying that a diamond was missing.

The CISF, which was guarding the venue, and police were informed about the theft. The registration details of the two Chinese men were checked and their passport details sent to the foreign regional registration office. The duo had cleared immigration at the airport and were waiting to board a 7.45pm flight when they were held. The Rs 34 lakh diamond was recovered from a 5ml shampoo bottle.