Karnataka News: Armed Robbers Loot ₹21 Crore Gold & Cash From SBI Branch In Vijayapura - VIDEO

Bengluru: In a filmy style of heist, three armed robbers, brandishing country made pistols, looted State Bank of India branch at Chadachana in Vijayapura district of Karnataka and made away with gold and cash all worth over Rs 21 crore.

Later, the police came to know that it was a five member gang and two of the gang members were waiting outside the bank while the three carried out the heist. The gang had come in a car and two bikes, it is said.

The police have tracked the trail left by the gang at Hulijanthi village in Mangala Kheda taluk, Maharashtra, where the robbers have dumped their car and escaped in different directions on motorcycles. Before scattering, they met with a minor accident near Hulijanthi village, and threatened a couple of youths who questioned them with a pistol. While taking their heist, the robbers have left behind a few packets of gold inside the car itself.

The incident took place late evening on Tuesday, when the bank staff were getting ready to close the bank. The three persons in army uniform and mask around their faces entered the bank and one of them fired one round in the air with the country made pistol to scare the staff.

The staff were huddled together in a room and were tied using tape. First, they took away Rs one crore cash that was in the bank and later, they got into the strong room and opened all the lockers and emptied the gold jewelry kept in the locker. The bank manager Tarakeshwar Venkatesh has filed a complaint with the police.

While the robbers were carrying out their heist, a bank customer called Srishaila had gone to withdraw money from the ATM. When he faced a problem in withdrawing the money, he went inside the bank to inquire with the officials. The robbers threatened him with a knife and asked him to sit facing the floor. They took away his mobile phone also. After the robbery was completed, they returned the phone.

Vijayapura SP Laxman Nimbaragi said that the incident had taken place at around 6.30 pm and the robbers had come in a four-wheeler and two two wheelers.

The bank had a transaction money of over Rs one crore and there was over 20 kg of gold kept in the locker. Most of the gold were kept in packets, as they were pledged to the bank by the customers. The total loot is estimated to be over Rs 21 crore. The police have recovered the empty cartridge fired from the country made pistol.

Interestingly, the bank security was on leave for the last one week. The ATM security had gone inside the bank to help the staff when the robbers entered the bank. The robbers tied him also along with the other staff.

The police suspect that the robbers had come from the road linking to Pandarapura from Chadachana and have gone back on the same road. While returning, the robbers drove fast and have hit a motorcycle in a village near Mangalakhed. Four youths in two motorcycles have followed the car till Hulijanthi village, where the road was closed. A village woman told them that there was no road ahead and questioned why they were coming so fast. At that time, the two motorcycles following the car also have arrived.

Even before the motorcycle borne youths could pick up a fight, the robbers have pulled out their pistols. They collected their bags from the car and escaped in different directions.

The villagers found few packets, which had gold jewelries that were robbed from the bank.