In a daring daylight robbery in Bengaluru, a five-member gang stopped an armoured ATM cash van and stole about Rs 7 crore while posing as Reserve Bank of India officials on Wednesday.
The incident took place between 12.30pm and 1pm near Ashoka Pillar when the van, owned by CMS Info Systems, was transporting cash from an HDFC Bank branch in JP Nagar to HBR Layout one, according to Times of India.
The gang reportedly came in two vehicles – a Zen and an Innova – with Government of India stickers. The first vehicle blocked the van while the Innova tailed it. The three men in the Zen told van driver Binod Kumar, custodian Aftab and gunmen Rajanna and Tammayya that they were RBI officials and that there was a complaint against their firm and that they needed to check their documents, according to TOI.
They asked Kumar to drive towards the Dairy Circle flyover, while following in their Innova with the two gunmen and custodian. They stopped at the Nimhans junction, and asked the three to go to the Siddapura police station to “record their statements”. The miscreants then drove to the Dairy Circle flyover where Kumar was waiting, and shifted the three cash boxes, estimated to have around Rs 7 crore, to a WagonR car at gunpoint and fled with it.
Karnataka Home Minister H. Parameshwara claimed that such a robbery had never happened before in Bengaluru, and promised that the culprits would be arrested soon.
City Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh told the media that the incident happened on Wednesday afternoon within the Siddapura police station area. Over 50 CCTV camera recordings are currently being reviewed to track the vehicle's path and identify the miscreants involved.
"Two Deputy Commissioners of Police (DCPs) and a Joint Commissioner are overseeing the investigation," Singh said.
According to the FIR, the company collects cash from the bank's currency chest in JP Nagar and loads it into their vehicle to deposit into various ATMs of the same bank throughout Bengaluru.
Parameshwara, who later met senior police officials, said that he, along with the Director General of Police (DGP) and Police Commissioner, briefed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah about the incident.
However, BJP state president B.Y. Vijayendra urged the government to immediately arrest the criminals. "The robbery that occurred in broad daylight in the city's heart has understandably created fear among the public. It has been repeatedly shown that criminals have no fear of the law under the current Congress government.”
Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly R. Ashoka alleged that rampant looting has become a characteristic of 'Brand Bengaluru'. |
