Navi Mumbai: A 23-year-old contract worker has been arrested by the Local Crime Branch (LCB) of Raigad police for committing multiple house break-in thefts in the past three years in the villages under Nagothane police station. He has confessed to have committed the crimes for living a lavish lifestyle, buying expensive mobile phones and a high-end car, and also to repay his debt after losing huge money in online Rummy. With his arrest, the police have detected five house break theft cases registered from 2024 till 2026 at Nagothane police station.Milind Khopade, senior inspector of LCB said the accused has been identified as Aditya Kuthe, a resident of Mundhani village in Roha taluka, Raigad. For past three years, there were frequent house break thefts at night in the villages of Shihu, Bense, Mundhani and Zothirpada. The burglar targeted the houses of villagers whenever they went out for functions either in their village or neighbouring villages. To curb these burglaries, the villagers had installed CCTV cameras on the street, after which the incidents of house break thefts stopped for a few months.Khopade said, “After about three to four months of installing CCTV cameras, Kuthe broke into a house in the neighbouring village where there was no CCTV surveillance. On Feb 7, an FIR was registered at Nagothane police station. Subsequently, Raigad SP Anchal Dalal directed the LCB to detect the repeated house break thefts for past three years. Constables Amol Hambir and Ishwar Lambote of LCB zeroed-in on Kuthe of Mundhani village, using technical analysis and inputs from informers.“Police said Kuthe had a penchant for playing online rummy and had betted a large amount and was under huge debt. He was also using an expensive mobile phone and high-end car. Kuthe’s bank account details was obtained and it was revealed that his actual source of income did not match with his lavish lifestyle. Kuthe was detained for inquiry on April 18 and when grilled, he confessed to have committed house break thefts in the villages in the past years. His custody was handed over to Nagothane police who had also sought his police custody remand for the recovery of the stolen valuables in the five house break theft cases.
