An unidentified man entered a high-profile high-rise at Pali Hill in Bandra West — where many celebrities, including actress Kriti Sanon, actor Javed Jaaferi, cricketer KL Rahul, reside — and damaged the building’s lift. The accused placed large stones inside the lift and also made inappropriate gestures in front of the CCTV cameras. The Khar police have traced the suspect, who was later found to be admitted to a hospital.
The incident occurred around 1 am on June 19, at the housing society located on Nargis Dutt Road. The Khar police have registered an FIR in the matter and launched an investigation. The complainant in the case is Umesh Sarate, 36, the security manager of the society. According to a police officer, the incident took place when an unknown man entered the society premises in a yellow car through Gate No. 1. When Security Supervisor Shyam Pandey stopped him at the gate, the accused informed Pandey that he wanted to visit a flat on the 17th floor.
“The flat owner had previously instructed the security staff not to call him via intercom if someone came to visit, and to allow them entry directly. Accordingly, Pandey relayed a message over the walkie-talkie, stating that he was allowing a guest into the building. Pandey then asked the man to park his car in the guest parking at basement 2. However, the man parked in basement 1 instead,” a police officer said.
Another security guard, Vijay Yadav, directed him to the correct parking area, and the man parked near the lift in basement 2, handed over his car keys to security guard Javed Nawad, and claimed he needed to use the washroom. “About 10 minutes later, the man returned and told the guard that he wanted to go to a flat on the 14th floor. When the latter asked him for an access card and tried to contact the flat via intercom, there was no response,” the officer added.
The man then claimed again that he wanted to go to the 17th floor. Suspecting something was amiss, the security team informed other guards and escorted the man out of the premises. A police officer said, “In the morning, the society’s lift was found to be non-functional. Upon checking the CCTV footage, it was discovered that the man had placed large stones inside it. He was also seen making mocking and inappropriate gestures in front of the CCTV camera.”
Senior Inspector Sanjeev Dhumal told mid-day, “We have registered an FIR in this matter. We traced the accused using the car number and found that he is currently hospitalised. We will verify the facts once he is discharged.”
