Boy scores 94% in Standard X, becomes thief later

On Friday, Kolhapur police arrested a 19-year-old boy in connection with over a dozen break-ins and multiple petty thefts. But unlike any other thief they had encountered, this teenager had been a class X topper and was enrolled in one of city’s best colleges.

The accused, Avdhoot Patil, would frequently visit a mobile shop to replace his brand new cell phone with another one. After the shop owner started recognizing a pattern in Patil’s transactions, he suspected foul play on his part and alerted the cops on April 18.

The police decided to keep an eye on Patil for a week, during which they received a complaint of a stolen bike from the Regional Transport Office. On April 21, when they cross referenced the number of Patil’s bike with the RTO database, they came up empty.

Confident about Patil’s involvement in the theft, they raided his hostel apartment and managed to find two laptops, jewellery, smartphones and a couple of expensive wrist watches. Police began the hunt for Patil and managed to arrest him on April 22.

Patil immediately confessed to the crimes and the police managed to recover stolen goods amounting to over Rs 12.75 lakh from him. After they did a background check on him, they learnt about his academic achievements from his school and coaching classes.

Patil, who aspired to be a doctor, had scored 94.6 percent in Std X and got enrolled in Kolhapur’s Vivekananda College. Considering his academic record, the Kolhapur police are searching for an NGO that can help him reform. He is now preparing for the MH-CET examination while still in custody.

Patils’ father is a farmer and mother a teacher, residing on the outskirts of Kolhapur. The lure for a more ‘comfortable life’ led Patil on to the path of stealing.