In a shocking robbery, the staff of Bank of Baroda in Navi Mumbai were stunned to find 30 lockers broken into at the Juinagar branch. The robbers dug a 25 foot underground tunnel from a store to the bank and stole gold and hard cash.
Officials reported the valuables stolen were estimated at more than Rs. 2 crores. The thieves rented a shop near the bank six months ago using it as a guise for their real plans of robbing the bank. The tunnel was dug through the shop and into the vault of the bank.
In May, the accused set up Shree Balaji General Store located two stores away from the bank. The police identified the main accused as Gena Prasad under whose name the store was registered.
The police officer in charge of the case reported, “The thieves had conducted a proper recce and after finding the bank shut over the weekend, they entered the bank and took away the jewelry and cash kept in the lockers.”
He further added, “They opened the store every day for daily business so that people would not be suspicious of their presence. Neither the bank guard nor any person in the building heard any noise while the tunnel was being dug. The thieves were digging the tunnel since the past few days and were waiting for the bank to be shut for the weekend.”
Regarding the people who lost their valuables, the officer said, “The locker owners have been asked to give their statements to ascertain the value of property lost in the theft. Prima facie the amount is estimated to be at least Rs. 2 crores, and we are waiting for the bank customers to report the total loss of their belongings.”
Commissioner of Police, Navi Mumbai, Hemant Nagrale explained, “We have few leads in the case and a case under sections 454 (housebreaking,) 457 (house breaking at night) and 380 (theft) of the Indian Penal Code has been registered at Sanpada police station.”
