₹3.46 crore heist at Businessman's bungalow in Bajajnagar

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Six unidentified armed robbers looted gold, silver, and cash worth over Rs 3.46 crore from the residence of industrialist in Bajajnagar during the early hours of Thursday.

The victim has been identified as industrialist Santosh Laddha (RL-93, Bajajnagar). The heist took place while the Laddha family was in the United States for a convocation ceremony. Laddha, who owns Disha Auto Comps in Waluj MIDC, had left for Boston with his wife and elder son on May 7 to attend the graduation of their younger son. In his absence, longtime employee and driver Sanjay Zhalke, who had been with the family for 19 years, was entrusted with the house.

Brutal attack on caretaker

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Around 2 am on May 15, six masked men arrived in a white car, parked outside a neighbouring house, and entered Laddha’s bungalow by scaling the boundary wall. They used the external staircase to reach the first floor, broke open the door, and assaulted Zhalke, who was sleeping in the ground-floor hall. His hands and mouth were bound, and he was held at gunpoint.

Two of the assailants stayed with Zhalke while the other four searched the upper floors. During the ordeal, Zhalke was beaten on the neck, back, and head when he resisted. The robbers spoke in Hindi and referred to each other using names like "Guddu" and "Salman".

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Massive loot

The robbers were inside the house for nearly two hours, between 1.58 am and 4.07 am, during which they looted includes 5.5 kg of gold jewellery and biscuits worth Rs 3.3 crore, 32 kg of silver ornaments and utensils worth Rs 16 lakh and Rs 70,000 in cash Initially, it was suspected that 8 kg of gold and 40 kg of silver were stolen. However, during the police inspection, 2.4 kg of gold and 8 kg of silver were recovered from inside the house and handed over to the complainant.

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Forced entry and damage

Except for the hall, all rooms had latch locks. When the robbers failed to open them, they smashed granite door frames to force entry. Jewellery boxes and doors were broken, and even the granite flooring was damaged.

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Immediate Response

After the robbers fled, Zhalke freed himself and alerted the neighbours. Advocate Jagdish Toshniwal (54), Laddha’s brother-in-law and a practising lawyer at the Bombay High Court bench in Sambhajinagar, received a call from Laddha around 4.30 am and rushed to the scene with his friend Mukul Gattani. They found Zhalke outside the house, shortly before police arrived and began the panchnama. Officials including DCP Nitin Bagate and ACP's reached the spot and supervised the investigation. An FIR has been registered under relevant sections of the IPC for robbery, criminal trespass, and assault.

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Investigation Underway

Police have launched a manhunt for the six accused and are scanning CCTV footage from surrounding areas. The stolen items' details will be further confirmed once the Laddha family returns from the US.

This is the largest single-house gold heist reported in the city’s history and occurred just one kilometre from the Waluj MIDC police station, raising serious questions about the security in high-profile residential areas.