Powerloom unit supervisor booked for Rs 21.89 lakh theft in Thane's Bhiwandi

An employee at a powerloom unit allegedly stole raw materials worth Rs 2189 lakh from a facility in Maharashtrarsquos Thane district police said on MondayBased on a complaint lodged by the factory owner the Bhiwandi police have registered a case under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against Ashish Singh 35 a supervisor at the establishment an official said PTIAccording to police Singh allegedly decamped with raw materials used in powerloom operations worth Rs 2189 lakh from the factory in the wee hours of April 17A probe into the matter is underway and a search has been launched for the accused the official added the news agency reportedStolen by night sold by day Mumbai fruit vendorrsquos double life exposedUnder the cover of darkness when Kandivali Eastrsquos roadside fruit stalls fell silent a thief identified as Ravi Chaurasia a Mira Road resident would move in mdash not just to steal but to stock his own business For months crates of the freshest and most expensive fruits vanished overnight only to reappear 10 km away in Mira Road where the accused allegedly sold them in plain sight from his own stall mdash until a trail of complaints by multiple local vendors and one autorickshaw led police straight to himThe accused Ravi Chaurasia seen on CCTV during one of the alleged latenight fruit thefts in Kandivali EastModus operandiPolice said Chaurasia would target roadside stalls late at night break them open and steal large quantities of highvalue fruitsgtgt Theft carried out during latenight hoursgtgt Expensive fruits pickedgtgt Stock transported using an autorickshawgtgt Goods sold the next dayApproaching the stall The accused Ravi Chaurasia is seen walking towards a fruit stall in Kandivali East during the alleged latenight theft centre Attempting entry The accused is seen trying to open the fruit stallThe confessionDuring interrogation Chaurasia told police he transported the stolen fruits in his friendrsquos autorickshaw to Mira Road where he set up a stall and sold them for profitHow the case unfoldedOne of the complainants a fruit vendor from Ramnagar in Kandivali East reported a theft on the night of March 31 2026gtgt Stock worth Rs 12000 was stolen from a handcart parked outside a jewellery shopgtgt The fruits were covered and secured overnightgtgt The entire stock was found missing the next morninggtgt Police said a similar theft had taken place earlier in the same area where fruits worth nearly Rs 72000 were stolenLeaving the spot The accused is seen walking away from the fruit stall after the alleged theft as captured on CCTVFrom driver to repeat offenderInvestigators found that Chaurasia previously worked as an autorickshaw driver before starting a Chinese food stall in Mira RoadIt was during this time that he came into contact with another individual involved in fruit theftgtgt Initially sourced stolen fruits from a contactgtgt Began selling them for profitgtgt Later started committing thefts himselfgtgt Police said Chaurasia conducted latenight reconnaissance in an autorickshaw along with an accomplice who is currently absconding before targeting stallsPolice actiongtgt A team led by API Yogesh Raut tracked the accused by identifying the autorickshaw used in the crimesgtgt The vehicle became the key lead helping police trace Chaurasia through CCTV footage and local inputsgtgt He has since confessed to the offences police saidCourt proceedingsgtgt Chaurasia was produced before a local court which remanded him to two days of police custodygtgt Further investigation is underway to trace his accomplice and assess the full scale of the theftsWith PTI inputs