August 15: The Nagpada police have nabbed a trickster involved in stealing valuables like cellular phones, gold ornaments, watches and electronic items to be able to marry his girlfriend.

Police sources said Mohammad Sharif Malbari (27), who had stolen around 11 BPL mobile phones and some jewellery, was arrested by the Nagpada police on August 4 from Kamathipura, where he was trying to sell parts of a mobile phone.

The police have recovered six mobile phones, gold chains, rings and some electronic items from him.

Sub-inspector of Nagpada police station, D S Patil, told Express Newsline that Malbari, a resident of Kamathipura, was a regular visitor to Kenara Bar at 7 Rasta near Agripada. He liked the bar dancer Usha and developed a friendship with her.

Malbari used to be a shop-lifter then. Soon the friendship turned into love.

However, Malbari's earning through shop-lifting was not enough to enable him to marry his girlfriend. So he started stealing mobiles and jewellery, sources said.

``Malbari had married a lady much older than him, and he did not like her. So, inspite of having children from his first wife, Malbari arranged a marriage with Usha,'' said Patil.

In order to collect money for the marriage, Malbari started visiting shopping centres, ordering shopkeepers to show him many samples. He used to pocket a few samples by deluding shopkeepers, sources said. A case has been registered against him under sections 380 and 379 of the Indian Penal Code.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.