At least six armed men on Saturday looted ₹1.57 lakh at gunpoint from a HDFC Bank branch at Bandala village in Jandiala block of Amritsar district.
The incident took place at around 1:30pm when the robbers with their covered faces barged into the bank branch and pointed a pistol at branch manager Puneet Kumar and asked the cashier to hand over the cash available in his cabin. Before leaving the bank, they also took along the digital video recorder (DVR) of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras installed on the branch premises, said Kumar.
Soon after getting information, a team led by Amritsar senior superintendent of police (SSP-rural) Vikramjit Singh Duggal reached the spot and started investigation.
Duggal said prima facie the robbery appears similar to the one that took place at an Axis Bank branch at Thathian Mahantan village in Tarn Taran district on Friday. ₹7.5 lakh was looted from the Axis Bank branch by five to six armed men who also took along the CCTV DVR.
Duggal said, “According to the statements of the HDFC Bank staff, the robbers came in a white Maruti Suzuki Swift car. A car of similar make and colour was used by the robbers in the in the Tarn Taran heist. It appears that it’s the gang same gang that executed Friday robbery.”
Pointed towards security lapse on part of the bank, the SSP said, “The branch’s security guard had no weapon, which is against the Reserve Bank of India’s guidelines. It also appears the accused had conducted a recce before committing the crime.”
{{/usCountry}}Pointed towards security lapse on part of the bank, the SSP said, “The branch’s security guard had no weapon, which is against the Reserve Bank of India’s guidelines. It also appears the accused had conducted a recce before committing the crime.”
{{/usCountry}}Jandiala police station in-charge Rashpal Singh said they have registered a case under Section 395 (dacoity) of the Indian penal code (IPC) and sections of the Arms Act against unidentified persons.