‘Bearded saint’ plotted thefts and then shaved after crimes in Mumbai

In Bollywood, the presence or absence of facial hair is enough for the character to go incognito. Gangster Ravi Pujari’s henchman Suresh Patkar alias Nana Patekar has adopted this trick and committed crimes.

But on Monday, the 49-year-old ran out of luck and was arrested along with three associates when they were planning to rob a jewellery shop near Lokhandwala.

An officer of the Meghwadi police station said Nana, a key member of the Pujari gang, has more then 25 cases of house-breaking, theft, assault and other offences registered against him in various police stations in and around the city.

Police said Nana used to grow long beard like a saint’s and also dressed like one. This kind of appearance would last for three-four months. “During this period of disguise, Nana would do the recce of his targets,” said Amitabh Gupta, additional commissioner of police (west region).

Once his recce got over, Nana used to strike with his men at the target. “After committing the crime, Nana’s appearance would suddenly change. From a saint, he would start wearing jeans and t-shirt,” said inspector U Kolekar of the Meghwadi police station.

The police said Nana had done similar kind of recce before allegedly robbing a jewellery shop in Vasai on September 16.

Nana, who hails from Bangalore, has been in the world of crime for the past 20 years. He got attached to the Pujari gang after meeting Ashok Chowdhari, the right-hand man of Ravi Pujari, during one of his terms in jail.

The officials said that Nana was nicknamed because of his stark facial resemblance to actor Nana Patekar.