In Mumbai: College student corners chain snatcher in Sion

A Tamil Nadu resident tried to rob a college student in Sion but was chased by the victim, who cornered him.

According to police officials, the accused has been identified as Maharaja Mani Pillomar, 33, who had come to the city two days back.

“Pillomar had been called to the city by his friend in Dharavi with promises of a job with a handsome salary. However, the friend ousted him from the house after taking two days worth of rent from the man. Pillomar had no money and so he opted to steal from a college girl,” said an officer.

The investigators said that the accused couldn’t communicate in Hindi or English and they had to call in a translator to record his statement.

“The accused said as he had nowhere to go, nothing came in his mind and he tried snatching a gold chain from the student, following which he was caught by her with the help of a local, Vijay Yadav, who was present on spot at the time of the incident,” said an officer.

The victim, Krutika Devkar, who is a second-year BA student from Khalsa, was on her way back home from college. Pillomar tried to snatch her chain near Dr. Mankikar Marg but couldn’t. He tried escaping but the girl did not let him go easily. She chased him for over a kilometre and with the help of Yadav, managed to get hold of him.

The accused has been booked under Section 393 (attempt to commit robbery) of the Indian Penal Codeand was produced in Bhoiwada court from where, he was remanded to police custody.

Past instances -

August 2015 - A 61-year-old retired army-man caught a knife-wielding man half his age, who was extorting money from his employee in Kandivli (east). While the assailant attacked the senior citizen during the scuffle and also manhandled the policemen, he was finally arrested.

July 2014 – After returning from a party in the wee hours couple Dinesh and Yogita Jaiswal confronted house breakers at their place, both receiving head injuries in the scuffle. The gutsy Kandivli-based couple showed incredible courage when they confronted a duo and managed to nab one.

November 2012 - 61-year-old Uma Ganatra helped nab a gang of robbers, after he chased the accused and raised an alarm, following which, the accused were arrested by the Matunga police

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