Sendhwa (Madhya Pradesh): Amidst a nationwide surge in garlic price, concerns have escalated not only among buyers and farmers but also among those involved in the transportation of the essential cooking ingredient.
Following the recent incident in Sendhwa, where a gang of more than a dozen inter-state robbers targeted a pick-up vehicle carrying over four quintals of garlic worth more than Rs 16 lakh, transporters fear an uptick in theft.
However, swift action by the Sendhwa police not only helped to recover the stolen goods, but arrest of 11 gang members within 12 hours after the incident near Bijasan Ghat on AB Road.
The police also seized weapons from the arrested individuals, who have been charged with multiple offences including robbery and possession of illegal firearms. An investigation was on to determine the motive behind the attack and involvement of any additional suspects.
According to reports, the incident happened on the night of February 22. Over dozen masked assailants on four vehicles intercepted the truck carrying garlic sacks from Indore to Nashik in Maharashtra. The accused forcibly stopped the vehicle and asked the driver and cleaner to hand over the vehicle to them.
Under the cover of darkness, the miscreants, brandishing weapons, resorted to vandalise the vehicle before looting the garlic sacks. The driver was robbed of Rs 15,000 at knife-point, before being abandoned by the roadside.
Following directives of SP Puneet Gehlod, five teams, comprising a total of 50 police personnel, were constituted and launched investigations.
With the help of technical prowess, intelligence and relentless interrogation, police traced details of four vehicle’s owner and drivers and arrested 11 notorious gang members from Sanghvi.
During interrogation, the accused confessed to their involvement in the crime, detailing their modus operandi of targeting vehicles along AB Road.
Those arrested were Suresh Pawra, Gyaneshwar Panwar, Ganesh Panwar, Sagar Panwar, Nazaria Panwar, Ajay Panwar, Lakshman Panwar, Sachin Singh Bara, Dinesh Panwar, Krishna Panwar, all belonged to Dhuliya district (Maharashtra) and Rakesh Yadav of Barwani district.
Nyaneshwar Panwara, Mal Singh Panwara, Anil Panwara and Akshaya Panwara all residents of Khanbala Mahadev Nagar were at large.
The SP has announced a reward of Rs 10,000 for the team for commendable role. The police also announced a cash reward of Rs 2,500 for anyone providing information about the absconding accused.
