Mumbai: The man who allegedly broke into actor and 2016 beauty pageant second runner-up Lopamudra Raut’s Santacruz flat and stole valuables worth nearly Rs 1 crore had an unusual past: he was once a police informer who had spent time with Gamdevi police learning how they investigated thefts.Chandan Mukhiya (26) was arrested from Darbhanga in Bihar on Aug 2 for the July 14 burglary. Police have recovered valuables worth nearly Rs 76.4 lakh from him.Investigators soon discovered, though, that Mukhiya was no stranger to their methods: In 2021, he had helped Gamdevi police crack a house-theft case while working as an informer. During his stint with the cops, police said, he closely watched how they collected evidence, tracked suspects and pieced together cases — lessons he allegedly later used on the other side of the law.In 2021, Mukhiya allegedly stole valuables worth Rs 1.8 crore from the flat of his employer, a diamond merchant, on Bhulabhai Desai Road near Breach Candy Hospital. Police said he buried the booty near his family home in Bihar.He was arrested again by Gamdevi police in 2025 for allegedly committing a Rs 25 lakh burglary and was released on bail in Jan this year. After his release, he did odd jobs, stayed in dormitories around Mumbai Central and, according to police, spent his time recceing the city.During one such recce, he allegedly spotted Raut’s building in Santacruz West, where bamboo scaffolding had been erected for repair work. On July 14, between 4am and 5am, he allegedly climbed the scaffolding, entered the fifth-floor flat and escaped with cash, gold and diamond-studded jewellery, expensive watches and other valuables worth around Rs 1 crore.“He randomly targeted the flat after noticing the scaffolding. He spent about an hour inside and managed to escape. He was caught on CCTV in just one frame in the neighbourhood,” a Santacruz police officer said.Raut, who was away at her Nagpur home, returned to Santacruz on July 27 and found her flat locked from inside. A building staffer entered through the balcony and opened the door, following which she alerted the police.Investigators pieced together CCTV footage and network-tracking data to identify Mukhiya. His details were matched with police records, following which a team travelled to his village in Bihar and arrested him.Police said Mukhiya had fled Mumbai soon after the burglary, boarding Jai Sagar Express towards the India-Nepal border.Within 10 days of the burglary, Mukhiya and his uncle Lalu Mukhiya (45) allegedly invested Rs 22 lakh in two plots measuring 2,722.5 sq ft near their village. One of the plots reportedly has a hotel on it.Lalu, who allegedly helped sell some of the stolen valuables, is wanted in the case. DCP (West Zone-2) Mohit Garg supervised the investigation, with ACP Vinod Gaonkar, senior inspector Dattatray Masvekar, inspector Sakharam Mole, assistant inspector Sanjay Kalhatkar, sub-inspector Umesh Kaulge, assistant sub-inspector Jaywant More and their team involved in the operation.“His whole family has a record of carrying out thefts after getting employed as domestic help. People should check the criminal record of workers before employing them as house helps,” the officer said.
