Jharsuguda, Odisha : Jharsuguda police have arrested four members of an interstate dacoity gang involved in a daring robbery at the Odisha Gramin Bank in Bikhampali under Rengali Police Station limits of Lakhanpur block. The arrest was made nearly 15 days after the incident, following intensive investigation efforts.
The arrested accused have been identified as:
- Virendra Singh and Pappu alias Prabhat Singh from Jutmill area in Chhattisgarh,
- MD Israrfil Alam and Hasan Ansari from Ranchi, Jharkhand.
The arrests were announced by the Jharsuguda SP office during a press briefing. Police recovered a country-made gun, two pistols, 13 live bullets, two motorcycles used in the crime, helmets worn by the accused, and ₹46,000 in cash out of the ₹74,000 looted, along with a portion of stolen gold jewellery.
The robbery took place on July 21st, when the accused—wearing helmets—stormed into the Odisha Gramin Bank in Bikhampali and looted ₹74,950 in cash and 44.6 grams of gold at gunpoint, before fleeing the scene.
Acting on the orders of the Director General of Police (DGP), Odisha Police across the district and the state have been highly proactive in investigating criminal activities and apprehending culprits. Speaking on the case, Northern Range IG Himanshu Lal stated that police will adopt even stronger and more strategic approaches in the coming days to tackle crime.
Further investigations are ongoing to identify and arrest other individuals connected to the gang, Jharsuguda SP Parmar Smit confirmed.
