In a major breakthrough, Oshiwara Police arrested a 25-year-old history-sheeter, Akshay Raju Duglaj, in connection with a mobile theft case and recovered a staggering 89 stolen smartphones.
The case began when Rahul Ramgopal Mishra (34) reported the theft of his Samsung Fold 5 outside his hotel near Annapurna Building, Jogeshwari West, on August 28. Mishra had reportedly fallen asleep when the phone was stolen.
Acting on a tip-off and under the guidance of DCP Dixit Gheda (Zone 9), ACP Chandrakant Katkar, and Senior Inspector Sanjay Chavan, a police team led by officer Deepak Thorat tracked down and arrested Duglaj in Jogeshwari West.
During the initial search, police recovered Mishra’s Samsung phone along with six other handsets linked to previous cases registered at the Oshiwara Police Station.
Upon interrogation, Duglaj confessed and led the police to an open area near a drain under a bridge connecting Vaibhav Circle to Celebration Club, where he had hidden 83 additional stolen phones.
Preliminary investigation reveals Duglaj has a criminal history, including theft, house-breaking, and cases under the NDPS Act and MCOCA. Police believe the stolen devices were taken from slums and homes across Anand Nagar, Gulshan Nagar, Goregaon West, Andheri West, and Bangur Nagar.
Authorities are currently working to match the recovered phones to unsolved cases and return them to their rightful owners.
