3 masked men loot ₹40L from bank at gunpoint
Three masked men robbed ₹40 lakh from the HDFC Bank branch situated in Rihanna-Jattan village alongside Phagwara-Hoshiarpur road in Kapurthala district on Friday.
The incident happened around 3.10 pm when two of the robbers entered the bank and held its manager at gunpoint. The third assailant remained in his vehicle with its engine revving to ensure quick escape from the spot.
Senior police officials, including Kapurthala's senior superintendent of police Gaurav Toora, reached the spot. 'We have gathered the CCTV footage from the bank from which we have received vital leads, which are being followed by multiple police teams. We have also traced the white Hyundai Verna car used by the robbers,' Toora said.
He added that from the CCTV footage, it came to fore that the accused had conducted a recce as they were seen approaching the cash chest. 'The accused also snatched mobile phones of four customers. We have recovered the mobile phones from different locations within 5-km radius of the crime spot,' said Toora, adding that the special investigation teams, comprising special crime branch and crime Investigation agency (CIA) personnel, were constituted for a probe.
'We are not ruling out involvement of insiders as the probe is being carried out keeping in mind multiple angles. We have been trailing the CCTV footage on both sides — Phagwara and Hoshiarpur,' Toora said.
According to the police, the CCTV footage showed the robbery was carried out with a such precision that the robbers entered and exited within three minutes. 'After committing the crime, the miscreants fled towards Hoshiarpur side. From their outlook, the accused appeared to be from well-off families as they wore branded clothes and shoes,' a senior official said.
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