Mumbai: 5 arrested for Rs 17.9-lakh ATM theft

The accused reached the spot located at Dahisar village in Thane in a Maruti EECO vehicle. They pulled out the ATM containing Rs 17.9 lakh, placed it in the van and fled.




Struggling to make ends meet during the lockdown, a daily wage labourer, an autorickshaw driver, a security guard and a photocopy shopowner colluded with four others to rob an ATM in Thane on Monday. The four were arrested on Thursday for allegedly fleeing with the ATM kiosk containing Rs 17.9 lakh.

While three other accused are still on the run, the alleged mastermind of the crime, was arrested from Uttar Pradesh later in the day. The four arrested in Thane did not have prior criminal records and were pushed to commit the crimes out of desperation, said police.

Thane crime branch (Unit I) arrested labourer Atul Davne (22), autorickshaw driver Suraj Mhatre (29), security guard Suraj Kamble (24) and a photocopy shopowner Fulaji Gaikar (36).

Assistant Police Inspector Sandeep Bagul said, “Those arrested today did not have a previous crime record. They were contacted by four others and readily agreed to take part in the crime as they were struggling financially.”

He added that after arresting the four accused, they found that the main accused – Bhim Zora alias Nepali – had fled from the city and was on his way to Nepal. The Thane police then contacted the UP Special Task Force (STF) and shared the photograph of the accused with them. The UP STF went on to arrest Zora on Thursday from a private bus near the toll naka on the Lucknow-Kanpur highway. A team from the Thane police has gone to UP to take custody of Zora.

Bagul said that during interrogation, it has come to light that Zora, along with another wanted accused, plotted the crime. “ Zora had done a recce of the ATM and found that it had no security guards and it was at an isolated spot. Accordingly, he arranged for the other gang members to execute the crime,” he added.

The accused reached the spot located at Dahisar village in Thane in a Maruti EECO vehicle. They pulled out the ATM containing Rs 17.9 lakh, placed it in the van and fled. It was taken to the house of another accused near the Haji Malang dargah. There, they broke open the machine and distributed the money among themselves. They then threw the ATM into the valley from where the police recovered, Bagul said.

The four arrested accused have been remanded in police custody for eight days.

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