The thief, Attaulla alias Raju Khan

Cops have nabbed a thief who evaded arrest for nearly 17 years. The accused, identified as Attaulla alias Raju Mustafa Khan, is a resident of Qureshi Nagar, Kurla. A property dispute between Attaulla and his brother led to his arrest. However, when cops produced him in the court on Saturday, he was fined R500 and set free.

Attaulla stole a water motor pump from an electrical goods shop in Kismat Nagar, Kurla, in 1994, after which he was arrested and charge sheeted by police. Although the trial went on till the 1999, Attaulla stopped attending court proceedings abruptly and was declared absconding in June 1999. Since then, he had been on the run, evading arrest.