PUNJAB: GANG BEHIND 34 ATM THEFTS BUSTED
CCTV footage of July 20 Sultanpur Lodhi heist provided the lead
The Kapurthala police on Tuesday claimed to have busted a gang involved in 34 ATM heists in Punjab, Himachal, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand; and arrested three of its members, including a Class-10 dropout who is the kingpin.
The Kapurthala police on Tuesday claimed to have busted a gang involved in 34 heists of automated teller machines (ATMs) in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand; and arrested three of its members, including a Class-10 dropout who is alleged to be the kingpin.
The accused have been identified as alleged leader Inderjeet Singh (41) of Jalandhar’s New Ganesh Nagar, Prince (25) of Joginder Nagar in the same city; and Amrik Singh (33) of Tarn Taran who is originally from UP’s Lakhimpur Kheri district. Police said Rs 10 lakh, two pistols, 12 cartridges, 1,200 intoxicant capsules and tablets, a car and a gas-based cutter with a cylinder used in a recent crime were seized.
“CCTV camera footage in the July 20 ATM robbery at Sultanpur Lodhi — in which Rs 11.43 lakh were looted — gave a lead about a Hyundai Verna sedan used in the crime,” said inspector general of police (IGP) Arpit Shukla at a press conference where he was accompanied by SSP Sandeep Kumar Sharma.
On Monday evening, policemen in Sultanpur Lodhi stopped a Verna and quizzed the three men inside; and the gang was busted, said the IGP. Cops seized the gas-based cutter, a cylinder, and fake vehicle registration plates. “When interrogated, they gave leads to recovery of the cash, the weapons, and intoxicants,” the IGP said, adding that they “confessed” to 34 ATM robberies, including 22 in Punjab, seven in Himachal Pradesh, four in UP and one in Uttarakhand.
They recently robbed the Verna from a doctor in Amritsar by throwing chilli into his eyes; and a Hyundai i20 from Jandiala; besides another car from Jalandhar, Shukla added.
They have spent Rs 3.2 crore of the loot either on purchasing land or deposited the money in bank accounts of relatives, he said. A case under Sections of the IPC, the NDPS Act and Arms Act was registered.