10 hours ago
10 women held after judge's mangalsutra snatched at Vrindavan temple
Agra: A gang of 10 women who allegedly stole valuables from devotees at temples in Mathura was arrested after a judge's mangalsutra was snatched at the Thakur Shri Radharaman temple in Vrindavan on June 1, police said on Sunday.
The 2-tola gold mangalsutra was recovered during the arrests across temple precincts.
Justice Prema Sahu, an additional district and sessions judge from Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, lodged a police complaint on June 5 saying her mangalsutra had been snatched while visiting Vrindavan with her family. A case was filed under BNS section 303(2) (petty theft).
Mathura police launched a campaign and arrested the women on Saturday.
SSP Shlok Kumar said, "We launched a campaign to identify and apprehend women thieves and pickpockets active in the temples, leading to the arrest of 10 women. We recovered the stolen mangalsutra and several purses containing cash, Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, debit cards, driving licences and other important documents, along with Rs 18,000 in cash.
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During interrogation, the accused allegedly admitted they were from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and operated in crowded temples in Vrindavan and Mathura, targeting phones, purses and jewellery. All legal formalities were completed and the 10 women were sent to jail. They have also been charged under BNS section 317(5) (possessing or facilitating concealment of the stolen items).