Nashik: A case of breach of trust has come to light in which two daily-wage workers hired to assist with a bank's daily operations allegedly stole cash amounting to ₹14.5 lakh. The Ambad police cracked the case and arrested both suspects. Police recovered ₹14,00,500 in cash along with four mobile phones worth ₹50,000, bringing the total value of the seized property to ₹14,50,500. In recognition of the achievement, the Police Commissioner announced a reward of ₹10,000 for the Ambad police team.
Vaibhav Vishwanath Dole (44), a resident of Gangapur Road, Nashik, associated with the Nashik City branch of Union Bank of India, filed a complaint at the Ambad Police Station. According to the complaint, on Nov 4, 2026, at around 2.15 pm, two daily-wage workers, Suresh Sonkamble and Anup Kumawat, allegedly stole cash being transported from the Nashik Municipal Corporation's Navin Nashik division for deposit into the bank. The complaint stated that both suspects fled the scene with the cash. Police subsequently registered a case at the Ambad Police Station.
The investigation revealed that the duo's job was to collect cash from various municipal corporation departments and deposit it into the bank. However, they allegedly misappropriated the money for personal financial gain. According to the complainant, the total amount collected by them was ₹14,80,336. This included ₹6,01,134 from the Satpur division, ₹3,26,825 from the Nashik Road division and ₹3,84,291 from the Navin Nashik division. Instead of depositing the amount into the bank, they allegedly misappropriated it.
Recognising the gravity of the incident, Police Commissioner Sandeep Karnik, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Kirankumar Chavan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 2) Kishor Kale and Assistant Commissioner of Police Sachin Bari issued directives to solve the case.
Following this, a team led by Police Inspector (Crime) Avinash Nadvinkeri began the investigation. After the alleged theft, the two suspects attempted to mislead the police by changing the SIM cards in their mobile phones. They travelled to Thane, then moved through Nanded, Shegaon, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Tuljapur and Gangapur before eventually returning to Thane.
Using technical data and information from confidential sources, the Ambad police deployed four teams. The police eventually laid a trap within the jurisdiction of the Chitalsar Police Station in Thane and apprehended Suresh Hiraman Sonkamble (40), a resident of Tulsidham, Dharmveernagar, Thane, and Anup Suresh Kumawat (41), a resident of Ajinkyatara, Sinnar taluka, Nashik district.
During questioning by Assistant Police Inspector Vilas Padolkar, both suspects allegedly confessed to the theft.
Police also revealed that Sonkamble has a previous criminal record, with a robbery case registered against him at the Bhadrakali Police Station in 2007. The alleged involvement of workers entrusted with handling bank deposits has caused a stir. The Ambad police are conducting further investigations.
