Mumbai Crime: Railway Special Task Force Arrests 2 College Students For Robbing Men Through Dating App Lure In Kandivali West

Mumbai: The Railway police have arrested two college students who allegedly used a dating app to lure young men as gay to a secluded area in Kandivali West where they robbed them of cash and valuables. This scheme had reportedly been ongoing for the past three months.

According to the police, so far they have robbed around 8 to 10 men. The youth have been identified as Anubhav Ojha,19, and hankar alias Ravi Jha, 19, both are students at a reputed college. The court sent them into police custody until May 23.

According to the police, a 23-year-old well-educated youth had registered on a dating app, seeking a same-sex partner. On Friday, May 16, he was contacted by a youth named Anubhav Ojha,19, who expressed interest in meeting for a same-sex encounter. The meeting location was fixed near a godown situated between Borivali and Kandivali railway stations. The area near the railway tracks is typically deserted.

As agreed, the complainant arrived at the location at around 9 p.m. However, Anubhav Ojha was accompanied by another individual, Ravi Shankar alias Ravi Jha. At knifepoint, both suspects allegedly assaulted the victim and robbed him of an expensive iPhone, a 3-gram gold ring worth ₹30,000, a 4-gram gold earring valued at ₹40,000, and ₹2,500 in cash.

The victim promptly filed a complaint at the Borivali Railway Police Station. A case was registered under Sections 309 (robbery) and 34 (outlines the duty of officers connected with village affairs and residents to report certain information to authorities) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita on May 16.

Given the severity of the incident, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Railways took over the investigation. Based on technical analysis, the police arrested Ravi Shankar alias Ravi alias Nandan Leelakant Jha, 19 and Anubhav alias Ritik Nanhelal Ojha, 19, both residents of Poinsar, Kandivali, West. Both suspects are reportedly students at a reputed college.

A police officer stated, "Both accused live in the same area of Poinsar in Kandivali West. A physical assault case had been filed against Jha in the past at Samta Nagar Police Station, while there are no prior cases against Ojha. Only a victim filed a complaint but the accused robbed 8-10 individuals."

The operation was conducted by Assistant police Inspector Abhijit Tailor under Senior Police Inspector Vijay Khedekar, head of the Railway SIT, stated that the accused were motivated by a desire to earn quick money. The two were allegedly targeting individuals through the dating app and had been committing similar crimes over the past three months.