Pune: Stolen Gold, Silver, and Cash Worth Rs 16.58 Lakh Recovered From Interstate Burglar
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Pune, 27th January 2025: The Pune Rural Police’s Local Crime Branch (LCB) arrested an interstate burglary accused, recovering stolen valuables worth ₹16.58 lakh, including gold ornaments, silver utensils, and cash.
The accused, identified as Lakhan Ashok Kulkarni alias Sachin Raju Mane (31), is a habitual offender with over 50 cases of housebreaking registered against him across Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Gujarat.
On January 13, 2025, in the early hours of the morning, four houses in Shripatinagar, Bhor, were targeted by the burglar. The locked homes were broken into, and valuables worth ₹26.35 lakh, including gold, silver, and cash, were stolen. The theft prompted Madhav Damodhar Purohit (64), a retired resident of Shripatinagar, to lodge a complaint under the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) at the Bhor police station.
Given the seriousness of the crime, Pune Rural Superintendent of Police Pankaj Deshmukh directed a detailed investigation. A team led by Local Crime Branch Police Inspector Avinash Shilimkar examined CCTV footage from the vicinity, revealing a single suspect who was present in the area hours before the theft.
The breakthrough came when informants identified the suspect as Lakhan Ashok Kulkarni, a known criminal residing in Mangalwedha, Solapur. Acting on this information, the police tracked Kulkarni’s movements and apprehended him on January 24 near Sasewadi on the Pune-Satara road while he was en route to Pune. He has been remanded to police custody by the court.
During interrogation, Kulkarni confessed to the crime. The police recovered:
Gold ornaments weighing 8.5 tolas
Silver utensils weighing 2 kg
Cash
A Hyundai Elantra car used in the burglary
The recovered items are valued at ₹16.58 lakh.
Kulkarni, who operates under the alias Sachin Raju Mane, has a history of housebreaking crimes and has served seven years in prison in Karnataka for similar offences.
The investigation was supervised by Superintendent of Police Pankaj Deshmukh, Additional SP Ganesh Biradar, and Sub-Divisional Police Officer (Bhor) Tanaji Barde. The team included Local Crime Branch Inspector Avinash Shilimkar, Bhor Police Station’s Inspector Annasaheb Pawar, and their team members.
