No leads from CCTV grabs, bikes used in crime were modified: Police to scan calls made around bank to crack hour-long heist in Surat
All the robbed mobile phones have been recovered. The accused showed no fear on their faces. Usually, we see that robbers tend to hide their faces, but in this case, they were unmasked. Also, the robbery went on for over an hour as against 15-20 minutes in usual circumstances.”
Two days after a gang of six armed men held hostage 14 people in a bank and got away with Rs 50 lakh, police are analysing the call data records from the mobile towers nearby to get clues to their identities. The investigation hit a wall when the faces of the alleged robbers captured on the CCTV grabs and their identity documents and social media failed to match. The police also found that they had come on motorbikes that were modified to match actual bikes registered in three cities of Gujarat. The robbers, who did not wear masks, were in the bank for an hour in the afternoon, during which they held a 14 people hostage, including customers and two men who had come to transfer cash of around Rs 40 lakh, which was also stolen along with their mobile phones.Also, the police said the bandits managed to avoid catching anyone’s attention for more than an hour, the duration during which the heist was in progress. Around 1 pm on April 27 (Monday), five men entered the Ashwani Kumar branch of State Bank of India, which is located on the first floor of Shakti Tower, Varachha, and inquired about savings and current accounts with bank officials. Apart from bank staff, six customers were also present when the robbers got in. After 10-15 minutes, three of them drew out pistols and tied up the customers and staff even as two others kept a watch on the movement outside, police said, citing a complaint by bank officer Prakash Bhoge. Bhoge told police that he initially managed to avoid the robber’s attention and pressed the emergency button, which did not work. While Rs 12 lakh was emptied from the cash counter, another Rs 38 lakh was stolen from a cash chest that was delivered to the bank by two people around 1.30 pm. The two men were also held hostage. By 2.15 pm, the bank robbers escaped with Rs 50 lakh cash and mobile phones of staff and customers on three identical bikes, the police said.Story continues below this ad The police have registered a case against six persons, all of whom were said to be between 20 and 26 years old, under BNS sections 310(2) (robbery), 311(robbery committed by using weapons) and 127 (2)(wrongful confinement). Also, the three ‘identical’ bikes used in the heist had licence plates registered in Ahmedabad, Jamnagar and Valsad, but were duplicated. Surat deputy commissioner of police (Zone 1) Alok Kumar said, “As per CCTV footage from outside the bank, the accused came on the three bikes…which were identical in colour, model and company. This means that the robbers had done detailed research before committing the crime. They did not randomly put duplicate registration numbers on their bikes.” He further added, “Images of the accused from CCTV footage did not match with members of any active criminal gangs in the country.” Alok Kumar further added, “… All the robbed mobile phones have been recovered. The accused showed no fear on their faces. Usually, we see that robbers tend to hide their faces, but in this case, they were unmasked. Also, the robbery went on for over an hour as against 15-20 minutes in usual circumstances.”Story continues below this ad He further added, “We are analysing a huge chunk of call data made near the tower of the SBI bank so that we can get some clues.” Witnesses have told the police that they emptied the cash in a cloth bag of Vimal Gutkha, commonly found in households here.
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