The sensational Mahesh Bank burglary was masterminded and executed by none other than the bank’s gold appraiser, his wife and their 21-year-old son, the Cyberabad police announced here on Tuesday.
The police apprehended 50-year Macherloju Brahma Chary, who worked at the same bank as a gold appraiser and duplicated several keys used in the burglary on the intervening night of November 28 at AP Mahesh Cooperative Urban Bank at AS Rao Nagar.
The sleuths recovered 14.5 kg gold jewellery worth `4.5 crore. At a press conference on Tuesday, Cyberabad police commissioner CV Anand, said that Brahma Chary’s wife Lalitha (45) and son Veda Virat (21) were also apprehended as they had also played a part in planning the offence.
The accused Brahma Chary, a native of Nagole, is a goldsmith and was working in Nagole before he joined AP Mahesh Cooperative Bank as a gold appraiser. He is also learnt to have committed the crime owing to huge financial commitments from the marriage of his second daughter.
He minutely studied the loopholes of the security system of the bank and took advantage of the slackness of bank staff during the lunch hours and prepared duplicate keys of the bank shutter, grills and strong room from the chamber of senior accountant. On November 28 night, he entered the bank using false keys, disconnected power supply of the CCTV cameras and opened the strongroom. He then cut open the grill door using a cutting machine and broke open the almirah inside and committed the theft.
‘’He opened 9 locks and broke open only one from which we realised that it was someone from within the bank. After interrogating employees, security guards, and ex-employees as well as examining the CCTV footage, we have shortlisted the three accused,” Anand said.