Mumbai:
Never again will 26-year-old Sandeep Tatkare break into homes. Tatkare, who had allegedly broken into a house in Mumbai was caught by an angry mob who beat him up and flogged him with a rope, leaving him in an almost unconscious state.
"They rained blows on him, kicked him and fisted him," said a resident.
"The police reached the place after almost four hours, and rescued the man," added an eyewitness.
"Before he was caught, Tatkare had allegedly entered into a flat in Badrinath Apartments and escaped with a cellphone and Rs 1,500 in cash," said a police official.
The owner, Anup Kumar, said his wife realised that her phone was missing and informed him about the same. That's when Kumar realised there was something amiss and when he looked around, he spotted Tatkare escaping and he raised an alarm.
Alerted by the commotion, around 5 am, residents of nearby buildings woke up. The residents launched an impromptu search for the thief, during which they spotted Tatkare.
However, on seeing him being beaten up black and blue, a few residents worried about Tatkare's condition, informed the police.
They asked the police to rescue the man and take him into custody. "The police, however, arrived at 9 am, although it should not have taken them more than five minutes to reach the spot," said a resident.
Tatkare was taken to hospital in a semi-conscious state.
"A case of robbery has been registered against Tatkare," said Deputy Superintendent of Police Deepak Devraj.