Crime Patrol: Diamond thief walks into web honeytrap (Episode 159 on 24 Sep 2012)

MUMBAI: Even conmen have their weaknesses and can be outsmarted.



A 24-year-old youth with an active web life walked right into a honeytrap, days after he allegedly stole diamonds worth Rs 6 lakh from his employer, and got arrested recently for forgery, theft and cheating. Karan Patel, the accused, was remanded in police custody till June 15.



The D B Marg police said Satish Shah, who runs a jewellery shop in the Lamington Road area, filed a complaint against Patel last month.



In the complaint, Shah said Patel had been working for him as a diamond sorter for the past four months. The youth had been able to win Shah's confidence. "In the first week of May, Shah gave him some diamonds for sorting. Patel promptly took the diamonds and, on the pretext of going to the restroom, disappeared," said inspector P G Sanas. Shah waited for nearly five hours before lodging the police complaint. He tried to call up Patel on his cellphone but it was switched off.

During the probe, it was revealed that the address provided by Patel (in Bhuleshwar) was a fake one. "Personnel from the D B Marg police went to the rented house where Patel supposedly stayed, but it turned out to be a fake address. They then learnt that the accused was staying in another house nearby. However, he had left by the team the police reached the spot," said deputy commissioner of police (Zone II) Anil Kumbhare. "Shah then told us that Patel was quite active on Facebook," he added.



The police then came up with a simple yet effective plan. They created a false profile of a good-looking girl and sent a invite to Patel, hoping that he would fall for the honeytrap. "The accused immediately accepted it and even sent her a chat invite. But we decided to proceed carefully. Using the girl's profile, I continued chatting with him for a few more days. We even exchanged cellphone numbers," said Sanas.



On Saturday, Patel was asked to meet the girl at a restaurant in Opera House. The cops even arranged for a woman constable in mufti. Patel was trapped and arrested the moment he got close to her. The police said they were yet to recover the diamonds from Patel.



Courtesy:

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-06-12/mumbai/32194402_1_diamond-thief-honeytrap-karan-patel