12 August,2026 08:15 AM IST | Mumbai | Samiullah Khan
Gold ornaments worth Rs 13.14 lakh and Rs 10 lakh in cash were allegedly stolen in two separate Malad cases. Representation pic/istock
In two separate theft cases reported at the Malad police station, police arrested two housemaids and recovered stolen property after examining 60 to 70 government and private CCTV cameras. One maid allegedly stole gold ornaments worth '13.14 lakh from a locked cupboard, while another allegedly stole '10 lakh in cash and later spent part of the money on gold jewellery and household items.
Police arrested Rajni Ramesh Mandhre, 50, a domestic worker from Malad West, for allegedly stealing gold ornaments from the locked house of a 37-year-old resident of a posh locality in Malad West. According to police, the complainant had kept his mother's gold ornaments in a cupboard at his residence on July 2. He later placed '50,000 in cash in the same cupboard.
A police officer
âThe footage allegedly showed suspicious movements by Mandhre, who regularly worked at the complainant's residence. She subsequently admitted to the theft and was arrested following due procedure. We recovered the entire stolen jewellery, weighing approximately 131.40 grams and valued at '13.14 lakh.'
>> A 32-gram gold mangalsutra
>> 10-gram gold chain
>> 3.04-gram Ganpati pendant
>> 20-gram bracelet
>> 35-gram bormaal
>> Two bangles weighing 25 grams
>> Two ear chains weighing four grams
>> Two earrings weighing 2 grams
On July 18: Complainant's mother kept her gold mangalsutra there before the cupboard was locked
On August 1: When the family went to retrieve the cash, they discovered that '50,000 was missing. A subsequent check revealed that several gold ornaments had also disappeared
On August 7: The complainant approached Malad police, following which a case was registered
On August 10: When Mandhre arrived at the house for work, police detained her
In the second case, 22-year-old Aarti Dileep Pednekar, a domestic worker from Charkop, was arrested for stealing '10 lakh in cash hidden inside a bed at an apartment in Oris Serenity, Link Road, Kachpada, Malad West. According to the complaint, the cash was kept inside a wooden bed in the bedroom between July 13 and August 3. A police officer told mid-day, "After analysing over 100 CCTV videos, we established her involvement and recovered '5.5 lakh in cash, along with gold jewellery and household items she bought using the stolen money."
Both cases were registered under Section 305(a) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Police said the investigations highlight how extensive CCTV analysis and quick follow-up action helped identify the suspects and recover a substantial portion of the stolen property.
