Dhoom-2 style bank heist mastermind found dead

Police arrested three of the five accused in the Sonipat bank heist and recovered around 23 kg gold, silver ornaments and cash from them. But the alleged mastermind was found dead.

Haryana police claim to have cracked a bank robbery case in Sonipat with the arrest of three persons, allegedly involved in the heist.

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Police recovered the body of Mahipal— the alleged accused in the case and the owner of the house under which the tunnel had been dug— from a secluded stretch of the Gohana-Panipat road on Thursday afternoon.

Mahipal is suspected to have committed suicide by consuming some poisonous substance, police said. His body has been sent for autopsy.

Police arrested three other accused in the case and recovered around 23 kg looted gold, silver ornaments and cash from them, said state director general of police SN Vashishth.

The accused, who have been identified Surinder, Balraj and Satish were arrested from Katwal village on Thursday, he said.

Police are conducting more raids to arrest others allegedly involved in the robbery, he added.

Robbers dug a 125-feet long tunnel to enter the locker room of a Punjab National Bank branch in Gohana on Sunday night and decamped with valuables worth crores of rupees.

A police man investigates the tunnel dug up by the robbers in Gohana bank heist, in Sonipat on Thursday. (HT Photo)

The heist, which came to light Monday, had shaken the state police and the newly-inducted BJP government in the state.

Sources in the police team, which cracked the case, said police got a specific lead after the DGP announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh on Monday.

After questioning bank officials and known criminals in the area, police zeroed in on the accused by tapping their mobile phones, they said.