Cops return stolen items to citizens

Nagpur: The city police, led by police commissioner BK Upadhyay, on Friday returned valuables worth Rs84.51 lakh recovered by the cops to citizens at a programme at CP Office.
Police returned items of around 221 complaints, some of whom have been hoping to get their valuables back since 1999. Most of the items were taken away during thefts, chain snatchings or robberies.

In regular cases, if police have recovered any stolen valuables, the owner of the items will have to go through legal and administrative processes to get these back.

Addressing the gathering, Upadhyay claimed that even after this programme, the city police will be doing all the work to give the stolen items back to citizens. “People buy these items through their hard-earned money. When we return their items, they fell very happy. Even I was a victim of theft twice during my early years in service. I know some items have sentimental value more than the cost,” the CP said.

Several citizens shared their experiences and thanked the police department for their pro-active approach.

A woman, who fell prey to chain snatching in 2010, said, “Within 10 days of getting a job in 2010, my mangalsutra was snatched at Pratap Nagar. I am thankful to the police department for returning my mangalsutra after nine years.”

Zonal DCP Harssh Poddar, who was also a victim of theft, said, “I was shocked when my marriage ring was stolen from a hospital. At that point, I realize how the victims of theft and chain snatching felt.”

Joint CP Ravindra Kadam said the police will do their job by catching the culprits, but even the citizens needs to be more pro-active.

Among all the five police zones, zone III which includes Pachpaoli, Kotwali, Lakadganj, Tehsil, Ganeshpeth and Shanti Nagar police stations, has the highest number of recovery.