Ex-house help held for theft at BJP MP Manoj Tiwari’s Mumbai flat

Mumbai, Jan 20 (PTI) The Mumbai police have arrested a former domestic help of BJP MP Manoj Tiwari for allegedly breaking into the actor-politician's flat in the western suburbs here and stealing Rs 5.4 lakh, an official said on Tuesday.

The accused, Surendra Kumar Deenanath Sharma, had been dismissed from service two years ago after he was caught using duplicate keys to enter the Delhi BJP MP's flat in Andheri last week, the official said.

According to the first information report (FIR), Tiwari's manager, Pramod Jogendra Pandey, has alleged that Rs 4.4 lakh went missing from one of the rooms in June last year, after which CCTV cameras were installed on the premises in December.

Pandey has alleged that when he stepped out for some work last week, he received an intruder alert on his mobile phone, and the CCTV footage showed the accused entering the flat using duplicate keys and stealing cash from a cupboard, the official said.

He said that the manager then alerted the security guard of the building, who detained the accused, who had stolen Rs 1 lakh.

The accused allegedly confessed to the thefts after being confronted with the CCTV footage and was handed over to the police, the official said, adding that further investigation is underway. PTI ZA ARU