MANGALURU: In a daring daylight robbery, a gang of 5-6 members broke into Vyavasaya Seva Sahakara Sangha Bank at Kotekar near Mangaluru on Friday and took away gold jewellery and other valuables estimated at Rs 4 crore.
According to Mangaluru city police commissioner Anupam Agrawal, the gang members, aged between 35 and 40, entered the bank between 1pm and 1.20pm. They wore masks and carried a pistol and machetes. They threatened the bank employees in Hindi and forced them to open the vault, where gold jewellery and other valuables were kept.
The gang members damaged a printer, forcibly took mobile phones from the employees and snatched a ring from a CCTV technician in the bank. At the time of robbery, there were only five employees and there was no security guard.
After putting the valuables into bags, the gang members escaped in a black car towards KC Road junction. Special police teams have been formed to nab the gang.
CM holds meeting
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who was in Mangaluru, held an emergency meeting with senior police officers and directed them to initiate swift action to nab the gang members.
Expressing shock over the daylight robbery, Siddaramaiah sought to know how the gang members managed to cross the toll gates on the city’s outskirts. “How can they cross the toll gates if security was tight?” he asked the officers.
The CM ordered the officers to tighten security at all toll gates and start “nakabandi” across Dakshina Kannada and neighbouring districts.