Chain snatcher’s plans of making base in Vadodara crashed in lockdown

Vadodara: Crime branch sleuths on Wednesday arrested a 20-year-old chain-snatcher who has 21 offences registered against him.
The accused Dharmesh Marwadi’s plan to build a chain snatching gang in Vadodara city after shifting from Surat four months back, crashed after lockdown was imposed in March last week. However, he had recently begun snatching gold chains and stolen two chains.
Marwadi was nabbed from New VIP Road after the cops received a tip-off that he was moving around on a stolen motorbike. The police said that 17-year-old boy had accompanied Marwadi when he snatched a gold chain the city.
“We intercepted him near Khodiyarnagar and questioned him about the motorbike he was driving. Marwadi admitted to have stolen the bike on July 2 from Wadi area,” said S Bharwad, police sub-inspector, crime branch.
Marwadi then admitted to have used the stolen bike to snatch gold chain of a woman on Tarsali Road on July 10. The police have recovered the gold chain and also seized the stolen motorbike along with two mobile phone and another two-wheeler.
He has 19 offences, including that of loot, assault and vehicle thefts registered against him at different police stations in Surat.
Two other offences have been registered against him in the city recently.
“He was detained under Prevention of Anti-Social Act (PASA) some months ago. After getting released, he decided to leave Surat with his family including his wife, brother and mother.
Marwadi shifted to the city four months back,” Bharwad told TOI.
The police said that Marwadi waited for the lockdown to end and then began doing recce in the city with help of a 17-year-old boy who is a local. The accused had made a gang of three persons in Surat for committing the crimes. “He had just began committing crimes in the city and was probably planning to form a gang here as well. He used to sell off the stolen gold chains to live a leisurely life,” the police said.