Rs.6.5 crore diamond heist: Mexican culprits flee to Dubai

Mumbai (IANS) - The daring diamond heist of over Rs.6.5 crore from the India International Jewellery Show-2010 here has been cracked by the police on the basis of CCTV footage and visitor records. The culprits were Mexicans
who have fled to Dubai, an official said Tuesday.

The four culprits, including a woman accomplice are Mexican nationals, said Vasant Mehta, president of the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC).

"Unfortunately, they went from the Bombay Exhibition Centre straight to the Sahar International Airport, and escaped unnoticed on a flight to Dubai," Mehta told IANS.

From Goregaon east, the venue of the jewellery show, the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at Sahar is barely a 15-minute drive.

In a crime straight out of a movie, diamonds weighing 88,999 carats and worth over Rs.6.5 crore were stolen from a stall at the India International Jewellery Show that concluded here Monday evening.

According to Additional Police Commissioner (north region) Ramrao Pawar, the incident came to light when the stall exhibitors were packing up after the five-day expo ended here around 6 p.m. Monday.

"The complainant, an Israeli national, stated that five unidentified foreign nationals had visited his stall some time this (Monday) afternoon. Later, a couple of them managed to divert his attention and the robbery took place," Pawar told IANS late Monday night.

Initially, the diamond merchant brought the matter to the notice of the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council and its office bearers, who suggested he should lodge a police complaint.

Mehta said the CCTV footage clearly shows the four culprits diverting the attention of the stall attendant, picking up the box containing the diamonds and walking out of the main exit uninterrupted.

"It is a well-planned, professional con job," said Mehta.