BARGARH : Miscreants decamped with Rs 25 lakh after breaking open the iron chest of Bhukta branch of Sambalpur District Central Cooperative Bank (SDCC) under Ambabhona police limits in the district late on Friday night.
The incident came to light after the staff opened the bank on Saturday morning and informed the police.
The burglars entered the bank after breaking the window grills.
They broke open the iron chest, in which the cash was kept, with the help of gas cutter. The miscreants also applied black paint on all the 11 CCTV cameras installed in the bank before breaking the iron chest.
In-charge SP Ashis Singh, along with ASP Jashobanta Senapati, reached the spot to inquire into the matter. Senapati said they have formed four teams to nab the miscreants.
Since Bhukta is located close to border of neighbouring Chhattisgarh, they are also in constant touch with Chhattisgarh police to trace the burglars. Police have sealed all the exit routes from the district.
The ASP said some footage has been captured in the CCTV cameras even though the miscreants blackened the cameras.
On August 5 last year, robbers had escaped with gold jewellery worth more than Rs 50 lakh besides cash amounting to Rs 16 lakh from Ruchida branch of State Bank of India (SBI) under Ambabhona police limits. However, Bargarh police are yet to nab the miscreants involved in the robbery at the SBI branch.