Mumbai bank heist: Cops trace seventh accused to Uttar Pradesh, nab him

According to sources, Mumbai police have nabbed prime accused Gena Bachchan Prasad, who had rented the shop at which the tunnel was dug

The police arrested one more accused in connection with the Sanpada bank heist from Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, taking the total number of arrests to seven.

Thirty lockers of Bank of Baroda were looted between November 10 and November. The culprits dug a 30-feet-long tunnel leading to the locker room from two shops away. (HT File)

According to sources, the police have nabbed prime accused Gena Bachchan Prasad, who had rented the shop at which the tunnel was dug. Police said he had submitted fake PAN card and Aadhar card while finalising the agreement. Following the heist, he had fled.

“Our team was searching for the accused in UP for the past few days. We caught him in Azamgarh. The team is now on their way to the city with the accused. They are likely to reach by Wednesday,” said a senior crime branch official.

Around 30 lockers of the Bank of Baroda were looted between November 10 and 12. The culprits dug a 30-feet-long tunnel leading to the locker room from two shops away. After recording the statements of all the people who had lockers in the bank, police came to the conclusion that valuables worth Rs3.19 crore had been stolen.

On Monday, the police arrested a goldsmith from Malegaon, who allegedly bought the stolen jewellery from the culprits, and recovered one-and-a-half kg gold. The crime branch also nabbed one of the main conspirators from Kolkata. Police have taken them into custody and are interrogating them to find out about their accomplices.

“Some of the stolen jewellery has been recovered,” said a crime branch official.

Police teams have been deployed across the country in search of the other accused.