This bank robbery left the police baffled. Masked men entered a bank in broad daylight, tied up the officials, taped their mouths and made off with the valuables.
For weeks, the case left officers with more questions than answers. The incident took place in June 2013, when masked men entered a private bank in Attingal and robbed nearly 1.5 kg of gold and over `5 lakh.
Though CCTV footage was available, members of the investigation team recall that the visuals were too vague. “All we could determine was the body shapes of the accused,” says an officer.
The police were under mounting pressure as the case remained without a breakthrough for weeks. Then came a seemingly minor detail that would change the course of the investigation.
Head Constable R Jayan, who worked with the Shadow Police in the case, recalls it as a ‘very unique’ one in his career.
“The cable tie which was used to tie down the bank officers was a peculiar one,” he says.
“Cutting open a normal cable tie with bare hands itself is difficult, so think about a much thicker one. We collected every type of cable tie available in the market and showed it to the bank officials, but they were certain that the one with which they were tied up was different.”
The unusual cable tie raised the possibility of a ‘foreign’ element in the case. According to Jayan, such ties are often used by oil companies in the Middle East to secure large pipes being transported on trailers.
“Around seven years before this case, when I was in the Trivandrum Club with a friend, he spoke to me about a man named Jayaprakash aka JP, who had committed crimes like this one in Saudi Arabia. When this memory resurfaced, I checked if this ‘JP’ had any links in the capital district,” he recalled.
Tracing JP’s journey from Saudi Arabia, where he had been released from prison, to Kochi and then further, police eventually confirmed his
presence at Palode in Thiruvananthapuram.
Further probe revealed that JP, along with four other men — Jaseer, Mahendran, Unais and Aneesh — had rented a house in Venjaramoodu.
Jaseer was identified as running a goat farm that was facing a severe financial crisis. However, he had a positive public image, making it difficult to link him to such a serious crime, Jayan said.
“But upon learning about a similar crime — a robbery attempt near Kallara a few days before the Attingal incident — and Jaseer’s presence there as well, we interrogated him. Five hours into the grilling, he admitted the crime and gave the names of his teammates,” Jayan added.
But arresting them was the difficult part, as the accused were in different places, including Kannur and Tamil Nadu.
The plan had been hatched by Jaseer, who brought JP and the others into it. After exploring multiple options, they settled on the bank in Attingal.
According to Jayan, the accused wanted to hit a big jackpot. “The cable ties were likely brought from the Gulf by JP or Jaseer,” says Jayan.
The stolen valuables were recovered from everyone, except Jayaprakash.
However, Inspector M I Shaji, who investigated the case, says the trial is yet to begin even after 13 years. “All requisite documents have been filed,” he says.