Ludhiana courier office robbery: Ex-staffer, 3 aides held

The Ludhiana courier office robbery, which took place on January 7, was planned by a disgruntled ex-staffer; the accused had threatened the staff and decamped with ₹5 lakh

Around a month after armed men robbed ₹5 lakh from a courier office in the grain market, a former employee and three of his accomplices were arrested on Sunday, while two others remain at large.

Two other men who also participated in the Ludhiana courier office robbery are on the run. (Representative Image/HT File)

The arrested accused are Akashdeep, 24, of Inder Colony; Surinderpal, 29, of Subhash Nagar; Rohit, 21, of Karnail Chowk, and Prince Mehta, 19, of Karamsar Colony, while their aides Vishal (Mehta’s brother) and Inder of Subhash Nagar are on the run. The motocycle and car used in the crime have been impounded, and the sharp-edged weapons have been seized.

“Acting on a tipoff, the accused were arrested from Karabara Chowk, while they were crossing the area in their car. The accused have confessed,” inspector Ramandeep Singh, Salem Tabri station house officer, said.

Akashdeep used to work for the courier company, but his employment was terminated in November, after which he hatched a conspiracy to rob the office, and roped-in five others, the inspector said. A courier company employee, Rishi Sharma, said Akashdeep had been fired for misbehaving with his co-workers.

On January 7, the accused had barged into the courier office at around 10.30pm.They had threatened the staff, and fled with ₹5 lakh. The accused were captured on CCTV camera.

An FIR was lodged against the accused under Sections 379B (snatching using force) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.