Man disguises as a woman to rob friend’s house, cites loan app debts

Hyderabad: In a bizarre turn of events, a man disguised himself as a woman to commit theft at his friend’s residence in Banjara Hills, allegedly to repay debts incurred through loan apps.

According to Banjara Hills police, the incident took place on September 16 when Shivraj, a resident of Udaynagar, Road No. 11, Banjara Hills, traveled to Nizamabad with his family. Before leaving, Shivraj’s son informed his friend Harshit, 26, a CCTV technician from Chittoor district residing in Lingampally, about their trip.

CCTV footage showed a woman breaking in

Upon returning the next day, the family discovered that the lock on their house had been broken. They found that 6.75 tolas of gold ornaments and Rs 1.10 lakh in cash had been stolen from a cupboard. A complaint was immediately lodged with the Banjara Hills Police Station.

Inspector Sheik Kaviuddin and Sub-Inspector Yasin Ali, along with their team, launched an investigation. CCTV footage revealed a woman entering and exiting Shivraj’s house around the time of the theft, leading police to suspect her involvement.

However, a breakthrough came when a local resident informed police that a man had visited the premises the previous day to inspect the CCTV cameras. Upon reviewing the footage, Shivraj’s son identified the man as his friend Harshit.

Police raided Harshit’s residence in Lingampally and recovered 6.75 tolas of gold ornaments and Rs 85,000 in cash.

Debt from loan apps

During interrogation, Harshit confessed to committing the burglary while disguised as a woman to avoid detection. He admitted that he had stolen the valuables to repay debts accumulated through various loan apps and had already used Rs 25,000 of the stolen money for repayments.

Harshit was arrested and remanded to judicial custody. Police continue to investigate the extent of his financial liabilities and any possible involvement in other crimes.