HUBBALLI: Hubballi police successfully nabbed a robber who was trying to flee with Rs 6.39 lakh from a bank in the city on Tuesday.
According to sources, a 33-year-old man wearing a monkey cap entered the SBI bank branch at Koppikar Road with a knife. He threatened the cashier and managed to grab Rs 6.39 lakh from him before fleeing.
Customers at the bank shouted and alerted the public outside. A police constable who was passing by and another police constable who joined him managed to nab the accused within 20 minutes with the help of the public.
Hubballi South Traffic police station constable Umesh Bangari and Suburban police station constable Manjunath Halavar are the policemen who caught the accused Praveenkumar Patil.
Hubballi-Dharwad police commissioner Labhu Ram said the accused is from Vijayapura district and was working in a private firm in Mysuru. He said the presence of mind of both cops helped catch the accused and recover all the money. “Director-General and Inspector General of Police Praveen Sood announced a cash reward of Rs 25,000 to both policemen,” he added.
He also thanked the public who alerted the police and joined hands with them to catch the accused. “It is a message to other offenders that police and public are active in Hubballi and no accused will be allowed to run away from here,” he said.
It is said that the marriage of the accused had been fixed and he tried to rob the bank two days ahead of it. He was staying in a lodge in the city for the last two days.