Santosh Gopal Nair made a fortune committing thefts and burglaries

Man with 135 theft cases held

Santosh Gopal Nair made a fortune committing thefts and burglaries. But the 45-year-old finally ran out of luck when the Mumbai Crime Branch sleuths nabbed him on October 13. Nair has 135 cases registered against him. He was arrested in 1999 in a robbery case and was released in 2003. “He used to stay in MIDC area, Andheri (East) but after his release, he moved to Nalasopara, Vasai, Pune and finally, Alibaug,” an officer said. Nair used to hire a private vehicle to come to Mumbai and commit the crime as it would not raise suspicion. Explaining his modus operandi, the officer said that he mostly targeted industrial units closed at night. Though he preferred operating alone, he sometimes roped in his friends from the city when the was job too risky. He lives in Alibaug with his wife and three children, who, surprisingly, are unaware of what Nair has been up to. Nair spent all the money leading a lavish lifestyle. Nothing from the stolen booty was spent on his family as he did not want to explain his source of income.