Barbil: Police Monday arrested two more accused in connection with the January heist at the Bank of Maharashtra branch in Barbil, recovering 236 grams of gold, 4 kilograms of silver ornaments and a car allegedly purchased using proceeds from the crime.
The arrested individuals were identified as Jitendra Kumar and Akhilesh Prasad Singh, both residents of Bihar’s Aurangabad district. The arrests were made after raids were conducted in the Daudnagar area of the district.
Addressing a press conference at Barbil police station, Keonjhar Additional Superintendent of Police Pratyush Mohapatra said the recovered gold included ornaments and gold biscuits made by melting stolen jewellery. The robbery took place January 19, when five to six armed miscreants entered the Bank of Maharashtra branch on the Barbil-Kalinga Nagar road and looted about 6.4 kilograms of gold ornaments and Rs 4.34 lakh in cash from the strong room.
Police have so far arrested 10 persons in connection with the case, including the alleged kingpin, Raushan Kumar of Bihar, who was recently taken on remand for further interrogation. Information provided by him led investigators to the latest arrests. Mohapatra said members of the interstate gang hail from Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.
Fourteen special police teams, under the supervision of Keonjhar Superintendent of Police Nitin Kushalkar, carried out operations across the three states. Earlier recoveries included around 400 grams of gold, two Scorpio vehicles, a motorcycle and a pistol.
Police said one accused had also purchased land worth Rs 47 lakh using money obtained from the sale of the stolen gold.
