With the arrest of one person, the police on Wednesday claimed to have cracked the daylight bank robbery case that took place at the Kochar Market branch of Punjab National Bank in Ludhiana on Monday.
The bank heist took place barely a kilometre from the district police headquarters in a thickly populated area. Ludhiana Commissioner of Police (CP) Jatinder Singh Aulukh said the accused, Sukhwinder Singh alias Moni, was a resident of the same colony where the bank branch was located.
Police have arrested him and recovered a sum of Rs 6 lakh from his possession, said the CP, adding that three others involved in the crime have also been identified and the police were trying to nab them at the earliest.
The CCTV footage of the robbery:
Sukhwinder, who was earlier arrested in another case, was released from jail on bail only four months ago, he said. During the preliminary investigation, the accused has told the police that the gang to commit the bank robbery was formed in jail itself, said the CP.
Police have also recovered a country-made .32 bore pistol, two magazines and five live cartridges from the accused which were used in the bank robbery, he added. It is learnt that CCTV cameras installed in the area played a significant role in zeroing in on the accused.
Meanwhile, police have launched a manhunt to catch the other accused in the case. A reward of Rs 2 lakh has been announced for anyone who offers any information about the accused, reports Hindustan Times.
(Feature image source: Twitter| Brian Holland)
(With inputs from PTI)