The Navghar police on Thursday arrested a Thane resident who was wanted for allegedly molesting women late at night in Mulund and Thane and fleeing on his bike. Three cases of molestation have been registered against him since last year.
The Navghar police said that they started hunting for the accused after a 35-year-old woman registered a complaint on February 7. “The complainant said that she was taking a walk after dinner near Sambhaji garden in Mulund (East) when an unknown man came on a bike and touched her inappropriately,” Akhilesh Singh, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone VII), said.
The police examined CCTV footage of the area and spotted the accused wearing a helmet and riding a Royal Enfield. The police started inquiries among informants to find out if anyone owned a Royal Enfield in the area.
Senior police inspector Pushkaraj Suryavanshi said, “We identified the suspect as Viren Shah (38), a resident of Charai in Thane. He is a manager at a retail outlet in R City Mall in Ghatkopar and we picked up from his workplace on Thursday. During interrogation, he confessed to the offence.”
Inquiries showed that Mr. Shah had similar offences registered against him at Kopri police station in Thane in February and May last year.
Mr. Singh said the accused was well-educated and belonged to a well-to-do family. The officer said the accused frequently targeted women who walked alone at night. He would touch them inappropriately and speed away on his bike. He would always wear a helmet to avoid being identified, the officer said.
