Gas agency cashier shot dead on way to bank, ₹10L looted
LUCKNOW: A cashier of a gas agency, who was on his way to a bank to deposit cash, was shot by two mobike borne miscreants in the posh Gomti Nagar area of Lucknow under Vibhuti Khand police station on Monday morning.
The assailants then fled with ₹10 lakh the cashier was carrying with him. The cashier, Shyam Singh (45), was rushed to hospital where he succumbed to his injury. Police have sent his body for post mortem investigation.
“Singh worked for Hindustan Petroleum’s Behari Gas Service and like everyday was going to deposit money in the bank near the gas agency at 10.30 am. Our teams have started investigation,” said senior superintendent of police (SSP) of Lucknow Kalanidhi Naithani.
The attackers came from behind and shot him in his chest. “It hardly took 10 seconds for them to arrive, shoot the cashier and flee with the bag,” said Hanuman Yadav an eyewitness.
“The man who was driving the mobike was wearing a helmet. It was the pillion rider, who had his face covered, who shot Singh,” he added.
Police teams have collected video footage of the incident from CCTV cameras in the vicinity to identify the attackers and released the picture of the assailants
fleeing after they shot dead Shyam Singh.
Singh was employed at the agency for the last 20 years as cashier. A native of Gosaiganj area of Lucknow, Singh was putting up in Vineet Khand and is survived by his wife and two daughters aged 18 and 14. His co-workers didn’t join work as a mark of protest over the incident. They have demanded cash compensation to Singh’s kin. The LPG Dealers’ Association of Lucknow has demanded security from the government for their cash staff following the incident.
On July 30, an armed miscreant had shot dead the van guard of a private cash collection agency, injured its officer and looted ₹6.44 lakh from the van in the high security zone just opposite Raj Bhawan Colony in Lucknow.
LUCKNOW: Investigators suspect the amount of cash (Rs 10 lakh) that Shyam Singh was carrying on Monday made him a target for the bike-borne assailants.
As a cashier of a gas agency, Singh was responsible for depositing the day’s earnings in the bank the next morning. But no deposits were made on Saturday and Sunday because of bank holidays. “Shyam left the office on Monday carrying the earnings of Friday, Saturday and Sunday,” said Masoodul Hassan Siddique, manager of Behari Gas Agency. This large amount of cash made Singh a target, suspect police.
“It seems that the assailants were aware that Shyam was carrying more cash than on usual days and planned the attack in advance. The manner in which the incident took place also suggests that the attackers were aware of the working of the gas agency and Shyam’s routine,” said a senior police official privy to investigation into the matter.
Considering this, investigators were screening the employees of the gas agency who worked with Singh. Police teams interrogated eyewitness present on the spot and were reviewing CCTV footages to get more clues in the case. One of the eyewitnesses, Hanuman Yadav, said the assailant who was riding pillion was wearing a black shirt. “He snatched the bag from Shyam Singh, holding the gun in his left hand and the bag in his right hand. His friend was already on the motorcycle, ready to flee. He
was wearing a helmet,” added Yadav. After the incident, the attackers moved towards Lohia Path and took one of the several exit routes to flee. “Through the video footage, we are trying to piece the movement of the attackers,” said the officer. However, the investigators had not found anything concrete in he video footage.
SIMPLE MAN WHO LOVED HIS JOB
“I don’t remember a single day when Singh was late for work. He reached the agency exactly at 8
am every day and was on his way to the bank by 10. We used to decide the time of the day by the work Shyam was doing,” said Masoodul Hasan Siddique, manager of Behari Gas Agency. Singh started work with the agency over 20 years ago and was one of the ‘go to’ persons besides the manager and the owner.
“We used to call him Shyamu Bhai. He was a very sensitive man and always lent an ear to our problems and extended support,” said Deepak Singh, a delivery man with the agency.