"While we are lucky to have been spared by the dacoits, my licensed revolver, which I had surrendered to the police ahead of the zilla parishad (local) elections, would have helped scare away the dacoits,” retired chikoo farmer Rohinton Tarporewala (73) was quoted in The Times of India (ToI) dated February 25, 2020. Reportedly, Rohinton and his wife Homai (70) were asleep in their one-storied bungalow, Tarapore Villa, in Bawda village, Vangaon, near Dahanu in Maharashtra on February 22 when they were woken up by sounds from the rear of the Villa. The news report stated that the five "dacoits” poisoned the couple’s two guard dogs and some hens and damaged their closed circuit television (CCTV) before committing the crime. One of the five unidentified armed men held a revolver at Homai while the others, armed with sickles, knives and iron rods, assaulted Rohinton on his right eyebrow and his back, reported ToI. The dacoits allegedly ransacked the cupboards and stole the digital video recorder (DVR) of the CCTV and the cable box and cash and valuables worth about seven lakh rupees. It was only after the dacoits fled that the couple reportedly came out of their bungalow to find the canines had been poisoned. While one of the dogs was already dead, the other survived, ToI stated, adding that two hens were found dead too. The couple’s offspring reportedly lives overseas.
The police, who suspect that the perpetrators may have kept a watch on the bungalow, are reportedly questioning painters who were carrying out work on the property. A case has been registered under the Indian Penal Code for dacoity and "maiming cattle,” ToI reported.
About eight to 10 Zoroastrian families live in Vangaon, stated ToI. The coastal stretch of Vangaon-Dahanu-Gholvad-Bordi is reportedly home to about 300 community members, many elderly and living alone, according to a Dahanu resident. Nargis and Naushir Irani, relatives of the Taraporewalas, were victims of a double murder in 2014, also in Vangaon. The perpetrator of that crime, the son of the Iranis’ caretaker, was sentenced to life imprisonment five years later (see "Life term,” Events and Personalities, Parsiana, February 7-20, 2020). "Most of the young generation has migrated abroad or to big cities for jobs or businesses, leaving behind aging parents. Almost 99% of our community here are senior citizens. They live in large farmhouses without any security,” Rohinton had told the Hindustan Times (December 15, 2014) when the Irani murder was first reported.