Armed men strike at ATM in east Delhi, flee with Rs 40 lakh

Four armed men swooped down on an ATM in northeast Delhi and fled with around Rs 39 lakh on Friday, police said.

Four armed men swooped down on an ATM in northeast Delhi and fled with around Rs 39 lakh on Friday, police said.

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The robbery was reported around 11.30am from E Block in Mansarovar Park when four bank employees, including an armed security guard, reached the location with cash meant to replenish the ATM.

“The men, employees of a government bank, were bringing the money from Karkardooma,” said a police officer. The police identified the four bank staffers as Jitendra, the driver, Sahib Singh, the security guard and Akash and Prem Singh, the two bank employees.

According to the four men, the driver and the security guard remained outside while Akash and Singh entered the ATM booth with the cash.

“They had just got into the booth when three men appeared. One of them injured the security guard by hitting him on the head with the butt of a country-made pistol, while his two associates barged in and overpowered the bank employees,” said the officer.

The security guard having been knocked out, the bank employees appeared to have little option but to hand over the cash box to the gunman’s associates.

The trio then ran to a car parked beside the bank van and fled. A call to the police was soon made and a police team reached the spot within minutes.

“An investigation of the crime scene revealed that no security camera had been installed in the vicinity of the ATM as is required by law. A case of robbery and another under relevant sections of the Arms Act has been registered,” the officer said.

The incident is a chilling reminder of last September’s Defence Colony bank heist during which a gang of five armed men had fled with around Rs 5 crore cash.

On September 29, just 12 hours after the Defence Colony heist, the driver of a van ferrying cash meant for an ATM had drugged and robbed its occupants of cash amounting to around Rs 50 lakh in northwest Delhi.