ICICI Bank cash van traceless after 24hrs

Bullet-proof van was hijacked at Salgadi on NH-33, about 65km from Jamshedpur, was carrying of carrying Rs 5.07 crore cash and gold coins weighing 1.20kg belonging to ICICI Bank. The van remains untraced even after 24 hours. Police suspects Maoists behind this hijack.

Director-general of police V.D. Ram said, “Neither the vehicle nor the cash and gold have been recovered so far but we are making all efforts.” He had visited the site of loot between Tamar and Bundu this afternoon.

According to senior police officers it is the fault from the ICICI Bank side for not informing the district administration about the movement of cash from Jamshedpur to Ranchi, allegedly undertaken by the bank at least twice a month, as per procedures it is mandatory to give prior information.

In fact the police are working on a “conspiracy” angle to the robbery. Ranchi police today cross-examined several key bank officials suspecting involvement of insiders of ICICI Bank’s Bistupur or Sakchi branch of revealing to the extremists about the cash movement, including van driver Vinay Singh, security guards Sagar and Babulal Mahto, two loaders Albinus Kachhap and Soma Kacchap, and bank official Parveen Kumar, who were in the hijacked vehicle.

East Singhbhum superintendent of police Naveen Kumar Singh, had made an on-the-spot, inquiry, said, “Some of the bank officials appear to be hand-in-glove with the extremists.”

Superintendent of police remarked, that, “The occupants of the high-profile security van had stopped at Salgadi on their own. The question arises, why they stopped the vehicle at a place, which is Naxalite-prone. Also, how could the Naxalites reach there moments after the van had stopped?”

The police suspect the hand of Jharkhand Liberation Front of India (JLFI) behind the said robbery, which was till recently known as Jharkhand Liberation Tigers. Jharkhand Liberation Front of India is known to loot and rob to fund their operations.

The police has intensified search around Barigarha forest where it suspect extremists might be hiding with the van belonging to the Mumbai-based Top Security Agency, along with all the cash and gold. A technical team has also been set up to track down the exact location of the van and the extremists.

A four-member team, including two retired IPS officials of Top Security Agency has been sent to assist the police.