‘Jewel thief’ held after luxury hotel swipe in Gorakhpur
A hotel staff impersonator stole ₹15 lakh in gold and cash during a wedding in Gorakhpur, but was caught on CCTV and arrested by police.
In a plot rivalling a Bollywood crime thriller, a man dressed as a hotel staff member, walked into a luxury Gorakhpur hotel, observed the frenetic wedding activity of a local businessman’s kin, and when the guests were busy in the ceremonies, he struck.
Using the hotel’s intercom, he called up the hotel’s reception and asked for the masterkey to a room he had been watching. Having gained access to the room, he walked in and walked out with gold and cash totalling ₹15 lakh.
Only, the CCTV cameras were watching, which led the Gorakhpur Police to him.
The notorious inter-state thief has been targeting luxury hotels across India. His latest crime involved stealing gold and diamond jewellery worth ₹12 lakh and ₹3 lakh cash during a wedding at the Courtyard Marriott hotel in the Ramgarh Tal area on November 16.
Addressing a press conference on Thursday, SP, city, Abhinav Tyagi, stated that Jayesh Ravji’s arrest marks the end of a theft spree at five-star and seven-star hotels spanning over 20 cities, including Mumbai, Chennai, Jaipur, Hyderabad, and Kolkata.
He confirmed that on Wednesday the accused had reached Gorakhpur from Delhi and booked a room in a hotel near Kali Mandir. Then he searched the list of luxury hotels in Gorakhpur and reached the Courtyard Marriott hotel, where the wedding of the nephew of a local businessman, Anup Banka, was being solemnised.
Tyagi said that the accused has committed thefts in 24 hotels across the country and in Gorakhpur it was his first attempt, where he was arrested.
Following a complaint by a victim of the November 16 crime, Anup Banks, a case was registered at the Ramgarh Tal police station. SSP, Dr Gaurav Grover, formed a special investigation team to crack the case. The team successfully arrested the thief on Wednesday evening near Kalesar, under the jurisdiction of Sahjanwa police station, in Gorakhpur district.
Modus Operandi
According to the police, Ravji, who hails from Gujarat, entered the Courtyard Marriott hotel and observed the victim’s movements for over an hour. When the victim’s family left the room to attend the wedding ceremony, the thief called the reception, posing as hotel staff, claiming to have misplaced the room key, and requested access using the master key.
Once inside, he stole jewellery worth ₹12 lakh, ₹3 lakh in cash, an Aadhaar card, a PAN card, and a mobile phone.
The theft was captured on the hotel’s CCTV cameras. With the help of open-source intelligence, the police were able to track him down and make the arrest.
The police recovered the stolen jewellery and other valuables. Commending the team’s efforts, the SSP announced a cash reward of ₹25,000 for the team and confirmed that the thief has been sent to jail.
A long criminal history
Ravji is a seasoned criminal specialising in targeting luxury hotels. His crime spree spans cities spanning the country. He was previously arrested for a similar theft at a five-star hotel in Karnal in April 2023. Interestingly, he had only just been released from jail on November 8, when he committed the theft in Gorakhpur on November 16.
Abdur Rahman