Robbery helps cops trace scooter stolen 13 years ago

Nagpur: Martina Marshall, in her 30s, was surprised when cops landed up at her doorstep at Mohan Nagar on April 22, asking if she knew anything about a Rs8.47 lakh robbery at Civil Lines earlier in the day. She was clueless, till the cops asked about her black Activa scooter, which had been stolen 13 years ago. The cops had spotted that Activa being used by the robbers in CCTV footage.
The Activa was being used by Amit Khandekar, one of the heist masterminds, for the last 13 years in the city, with no cops ever catching him. He claims to have taken away the Activa from one Somkuwar in Pandhrabodhi, against an unpaid loan. There is only one pending challan on the scooter, since 2020 for a parking violation.
Martina was in her early 20s when she purchased the Activa to go to her office. She had toiled hard to save money in 2007 to make the down payment and buy her first vehicle on a monthly instalment scheme. In January 2010, Martina paid the last instalment, and on March 19 the same year the Activa was stolen from Mount Road. Sadar police registered the offence on March 24, 2010.
Martina and her mother Sadhana went to every police station over the next six months to search among seized vehicles, before giving up all hopes of seeing it again. Then, on April 22, 2023, the cops came calling. Martina was not aware of any crime committed with her vehicle, nor could she recall immediately where the documents and police report of the stolen scooter were kept 13 years ago.
Though the cops were polite with Martina, their roving eyes and questioning regarding those staying with her did make her somewhat uncomfortable, and curious too. When a cop showed a photograph of an unidentified man on a black Activa scooter she had lost, she put the puzzle together and understood the chain of events.
Martina could fortunately trace the documents of the Activa and the FIR copy, which she handed over to the cops. “All I could recall was that my father had calmed me down after I panicked on losing it. He had said that we are happy that I was safe,” said Martina.
“Again I had toiled hard to buy another scooter, as attending office had become difficult, and costly by bus and autorickshaw. I used to walk 3km to save Rs5 on bus, and purchased my second vehicle exactly a year later,” said Martina, who now works at Mihan.
Now, if she gets the stolen Activa back, Martina wants to donate it to some needy person. “We already have two two-wheelers,” she says.