Mumbai Railway Police identified the suspect as Ajay Mahavir Bhuktar (19), a resident of Siddharth Nagar in Hingoli. Bhuktar was handed over to Pune Police on Sunday (January 10). Primary investigation revealed that he is currently unemployed.
Gold ornaments worth Rs 12 lakh beautifying the Ganesh idol in the Sharada Ganajan Temple in Mandai area of the city were allegedly stolen on Friday. The incident happened at around 1.30 am on Friday. Three squads of Vishrambaug police and crime branch were on the trail of the suspect from Friday (January 8).
The CCTV footage revealed that one person had entered the temple and fled away with the ornaments and broke the donation box. Followed by the robbery, Vishrambaug police officials rushed to the spot.
Meanwhile, acting on a tip-off, a team from crime branch unit one from the Mumbai police nabbed the suspect from Dagina Bazar on Saturday evening at about 7pm.
According to the police, cops patrolling the Dhanji Street Naka area of Dagina Bazar in Mumbai received information about the suspect in the theft case of Sharada Ganpati temple arriving in the area.
Accordingly, the squad led by Senior Police Inspector Deepak Nikam from Lokmanya Tilak Marg Police Station took him in custody and later handed him over to the Pune Police for further investigation.