Two held for ‘robbing man, pushing him off auto’

THE CRIME branch on Monday arrested an auto rickshaw driver and his accomplice for allegedly robbing a man of his mobile phone and throwing him out of a running auto when he tried to chase them down. While a case had been registered at the Pant Nagar police station earlier this year, the crime branch arrested the duo on Monday.

An officer said that on May 29, Mulund resident Sunil Chaukekar was walking on the road at Kamraj Nagar in Ghatkopar (east) while talking on his phone, when it was snatched away by a man seated on the backseat of an auto which brushed past him. Chaukekar chased the auto and scuffled with the accused for nearly 50 meters before he was pushed of the running vehicle. The auto sped away from the spot and Chaukekar sustained minor injuries.

He then approached the local Pant Nagar police station in Ghatkopar where a robbery case was registered against unidentified persons. The local crime branch then began investigation in the matter and found that two history sheeters, auto driver Shafiq Sayyed (28) and his accomplice Mehfooz Ansari (39), were allegedly involved in the crime.

“Based on some technical evidence, we confirmed their involvement and arrested them. We also found the involvement of two other accused who remain on the run,” an officer added.