They'd pulled off such stunts before, but this time around, they ran out of luck.
Three burqa-clad women, who allegedly stole jewellery by posing as customers in a jewellery store in Bhuleshwar, were caught red-handed on Saturday.
To keep away prying eyes, they had tagged two children along to make it seem like a family shopping spree.
The trio, who were caught with imitation jewellery worth Rs 8,000, had allegedly robbed other jewellery stores in south Mumbai, including Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri, the police said.
Festival rush
The three women with the children sauntered into the store at Kabutarkhana in Bhuleshwar, hoping to mingle with the crowd of shoppers during the festival season, the police said.
A store employee, identified only as Rakesh, showed them a slew of items which they evinced interest in buying.
The three women, accompanied by two children, mingle with the crowd of festival shoppers and check out imitation jewellery at a store in Bhuleshwar
When they leave without buying any of it, the storeowner smells a rat. He quickly asks the employee to check the CCTV footage
Their theft captured on camera, the owner hands them over to the police. During interrogation they confess to other robberies in the area too. ILLUSTRATIONS/SATISH ACHARYA
However, the women left the store without making any purchase, thus raising the suspicion of the storeowner Suresh Kumar Kumavat.
Kumavat promptly instructed Rakesh to check the closed circuit television camera footage at the store.
"The footage showed them lifting something and the owner quickly rushed out looking for the women who had not gone too far from the store," the police said.
Booty found
The police said the women have confessed to the crime and 75 pieces of imitation jewellery, collectively valued around Rs 8,000, were recovered from them.
The trio has been identified as Yasin Khan, Muskan Shaikh and Sabia Shaikh each aged 30.
While the two children who were accompanying them have been handed over to the juvenile court, a metropolitan magistrate's court yesterday remanded the women in judicial custody till October 30.
"The women, all habitual offenders, have confessed to robberies in Pydhonie, Nagpada and Dongri and one at Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri store in Mumbadevi," said Senior Inspector Arun Borude of LT Marg police station.
Though each of the women operated differently, they were always accompanied by children and wore burqas whenever they set out on their stealing jaunts. | 
