The man was caught flashing the woman in Kopari area.
A man in Thane was arrested on Sunday for allegedly molesting a woman inside an ATM at around 3 am after a video of the accused flashing the woman went viral.
The 23-year-old woman narrated the incident in a series of tweets. It was her birthday and she wanted to use the ATM to pay auto-rickshaw fare. The accused, who met the woman at the State Bank Of India ATM in Kopari area, offered to lend her money when she faced problems in withdrawing cash and started "touching her", the woman alleged.
In the video, shared by the woman on Twitter, the accused can be seen flashing the woman inside the ATM. He suddenly turns his back to the camera when he notices the woman recording him. He then steps out of the ATM in a rush.
"It's 3 am when I'm typing this. A man just flashed me his #### in a ### ATM! I had gotten down to withdraw money to pay the Rick and was I was facing problems and this guy offered to pay for it but he kept touching me, inside the ATM! I decided to record him and he...panicked.," the 23-year-old wrote on Twitter.
She said she was "lucky" to find a PCR van near the ATM and showed the video to a cop. "Luckily there was a cop car, and I showed them the video and they followed him," she wrote in another post.
"It's sick that a man felt that it was okay to flash me inside an atm where there are cameras! When is it going to stop? (sic)" she asked.
The video that she shared has been shared more than 11,000 times on Twitter. The woman, praised by many on social media for her courage and presence of mind, later in a post said the accused was arrested. "Thank you everyone for such kind words and support. And thank you @MumbaiPolice for taking immediate action. :), (sic)" she tweeted.
"I really hope no one ever has to feel unsafe in a place they call home," the woman further wrote in one of the emotional posts.
Among those who praised the woman were actor Mona Ambegaonkar and BJP social media officer Priti Gandhi. "When you do find out his name, make it public. Let's ensure he won't ever forget this day. Sorry that you went through this. It's incidents like this that make me think all women should carry weapons," said 49-year-old TV actor.
BJP's social media in-charge Priti Gandhi wrote: "Way to go, girl Mumbai undoubtedly has always been very safe for women but once in a while when things do go out of hands, seeing girls like you tackle the situation head-on feels good!! Happy to see your presence of mind..And thank you @MumbaiPolice for the prompt action!!"
The State Bank of India also tweeted out their support. "We are glad you are safe and applaud your presence of mind on how you dealt with the situation which will help the police with further investigation. We request you to share the precise location along with the PIN code of the ATM. Thank you," the SBI wrote.
A case has been filed against the accused under the Indian Penal Code sections 354(A) and 509.