Updated On: 29 August, 2024 06:55 AM IST | Mumbai | Shirish Vaktania
Accused, a repeat offender, had climbed into film director’s sixth floor flat and taken R6,000 from a purse before cat’s meowing alerted family

Stills from CCTV camera footage inside the complainant’s flat show the cat (circled) following the burglar
The Amboli police have arrested a 19-year-old man for breaking into the sixth-floor residence of Marathi film director Swapna Waghmare Joshi in Andheri West on August 25. The accused, Aniket Murti Kaundkar, had used a pipe to climb up and enter through a window. The alleged burglar managed to pocket Rs 6,000 after the family cat’s persistent meowing alerted Waghmare’s son-in-law. However, before the latter could catch him, Kaundkar deftly escaped via the same window through which he had entered. The alleged burglar’s actions were captured by CCTV cameras installed inside the flat.
Kaundkar, a resident of Siddharth Nagar, Andheri West, has a criminal record, with cases registered against him at the Juhu, Versova and Amboli police stations.
Joshi resides in Vinger B Society near the Shabari Hotel. “At approximately 3.30 am, an unidentified individual entered the Joshi residence through a window and stole money from a purse. The suspect fled when a family member attempted to apprehend him,” a police officer said.