Thief steals fake jewellery, leaves real gold worth lakhs untouched in Kandivali

A major theft was narrowly averted in Kandivli late Friday night after a burglar broke into a home and escaped with imitation jewellery, leaving behind real gold ornaments worth lakhs. The thief mistook the fake jewellery for the real deal, while the genuine ornaments were securely stored in boxes. The incident was captured on CCTV cameras installed in the society.

The victim, Tushar Ramesh Dharod, 44, resides in the Shafalya building on Kasturba Cross Road, Kandivli West. According to sources, the same suspect attempted break-ins at three to four homes in the vicinity. While he managed to steal gold jewellery worth R6 lakh from a neighbouring society, he left the Dharod household without taking a single real ornament.

Saphalya Society on Kasturba Cross Road, Kandivli West, where the Dharod family lives on the second floor. Pics/Shirish Vaktania

Speaking to mid-day, Dharod said, “Around 2 am on Friday, I was asleep in the bedroom along with my wife Jinal and our 14-year-old son Dhanish. My mother, Hemlata, was sleeping in the hall. I had not locked the grill on the hall window. The intruder, whose face was covered, climbed up to our second-floor flat using a cable wire and entered through the window.”

“He entered our bedroom and opened the cupboard. My wife had stored all our gold jewellery inside boxes in the locker, but had left the imitation jewellery out in the open. The thief assumed the fake pieces were real and took all, along with a carry bag. He didn’t even touch the boxes containing the real ornaments. Thanks to that, we were able to save jewellery worth lakhs,” Dharod said.

He added, “The thief stole around 12 sets of imitation jewellery—including pearl necklaces, rings, and earrings—all of which were fake. My wife had purchased them to match outfits for upcoming family functions. The intruder also took my son’s smartwatch, which cost just R500, but ignored a more expensive one placed next to it. It seems he didn’t know the difference between real and fake items.”

(From left) Jinal Dharod, Hemlata Dharod, and Tushar Dharod

Dharod said they alerted the Kandivli police, who registered an FIR. “We gave our statement for the FIR after informing them about the incident and also mentioned the theft in the neighbouring society,” he said.

The Kandivli police have filed an FIR against the unidentified accused, who allegedly targeted multiple homes and managed to steal valuables worth R6 lakh—including gold ornaments and cash—from another society nearby. A police officer said, “We are scanning CCTV footage from the area and working to identify and track down the accused.”

This article first appeared on Mid Day