BHAWANIPATNA: In a swift action, police nabbed five persons within five hours of an attempted robbery near Municipality Staff Colony in Bhawanipatna on Monday morning.
Three miscreants attempted to loot money from two employees of a business house who were on way to the bank to deposit cash. As per eye-witnesses, three miscreants came on a motorcycle and threw chilly powder on the employees and tried to snatch the money bag from them containing Rs 3 lakh.
As locals gathered, the miscreants tried to escape by hurling a crude bomb at the two-wheeler of the two employees. The explosion damaged the vehicle and injured both riders and a passerby. One of the injured has been admitted to Bhawanipatna hospital.
While two of the miscreants managed to escape, one was caught by the public and handed to police. SDPO Ajinkiya Mane reached the spot with a scientific team and began investigating.
Kalahandi SP Nagaraj Devarakonda said police arrested the two miscreants while they were fleeing Bhawanipatna. Investigation revealed the involvement of locals in the crime. “The accused from Ganjam were trying to commit the crime in connivance with some locals. The accused led police to recovery of a US-made pistol from Sambhunagarpada,” said the SP.
The arrested individuals were identified as Ishan Naik, Manu Naik, Biranchi Naik, Trilochan Pradhan and Abdul Sarfoj Khan.
The source of procurement of the fire-arms and its further link is under verification. The involvement of the other accused persons in this case is yet to be ascertained, the SP said.