Two masked men robbed a 52-year-old banker of ₹1.2 lakh and his mobile phones at gunpoint after offering him a free car ride in Zirakpur on Friday.
Threatening to kill him, the robbers first looted ₹1 lakh through UPI transfer, before forcing the victim to withdraw ₹20,000 from an ATM, said police.
The victim, Vikas Chopra, an employee of SBI, told the police that he was returning to Sangrur, his place of posting, after attending to an ailing family member in town.
He was waiting to board a bus near Peerwala Chowk bus stop on Zirakpur Road around 8 am. Meanwhile, two men in a white Skoda car stopped near him and offered him a ride till Patiala.
“As it was raining, I accepted the ride. The two men were wearing face masks, which I presumed was due to Covid-19. When the car reached near Chatt village, the accused, instead of driving through the toll plaza, turned towards the village to avoid the tax,” said Vikas.
As the car reached a deserted road, the duo stopped the car and dragged him out at gunpoint, demanding his money. After not finding enough cash in his wallet, the robbers made him transfer ₹1 lakh through UPI and then took him to an ATM in Dashmesh Nagar, where they withdrew ₹20,000. Before fleeing, the duo also snatched his mobile phones, the victim alleged.
He walked to a shop and contacted his family, following which his son-in-law Hitesh Jain took him to the Zirakpur police station. He said to evade identification, the accused had smeared soil on their car’s registration number plate.
{{/usCountry}}He walked to a shop and contacted his family, following which his son-in-law Hitesh Jain took him to the Zirakpur police station. He said to evade identification, the accused had smeared soil on their car’s registration number plate.
{{/usCountry}}Zirakpur SHO Simarjeet Singh said they had launched a manhunt to nab the accused.
Two fall prey to snatchers in Mohali, Chandigarh
Snatchers targeted two residents of Mohali and Chandigarh on Thursday. In Mohali, two youths in a car snatched ₹11,000 in cash at knifepoint from a scrap dealer in Derri village.
A snatching case was registered at the Sohana police station on the complaint of the victim, Sohan Yadav, of Derri village. Police said the car’s number had been noted and the snatchers will be nabbed soon.
In Chandigarh, a scooter-borne man made off with the mangalsutra of a woman in Sector 41. The victim, Sonia, 25, of Sector 42, was visiting Krishna Market in Sector 41 with her family. She said while she was walking towards the market, a man riding a Honda Activa snatched her mangalsutra and sped away. A case was registered at the Sector-39 station.