Court frames charges against 9

Sandeep Rana

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 15

A local court today chargesheeted nine members of a gang, who carrying sharp weapons and a pistol, looted Rs 5 lakh from a cash van outside the Khuda Ali Sher branch of the State Bank of Patiala in 2014. They were also involved in a heist of Rs 1.34 crore, robbed from a cash van of the Axis Bank at Sector 85 in Mohali.

The matter will now be taken up on October 28. Ranpreet Singh, alias Rana, alias Teetu (35) of Banur, Butta Giri (22), Joginder Singh (38), Manpreet Singh, alias Manna, Talwinder Singh, alias Chann (21), all from Sohana, Harjeet Singh, alias Harry, of Hoshiarpur, Parminder Singh (31) of Sector 23, Chandigarh, and two others are among those chargesheeted by the court.

In a case of daylight robbery, the armed men chased the cash van inside a narrow lane in Khuda Ali Sher village leading to the bank branch. As the cashier had gone inside the bank to deposit the cash, the assailants attacked the driver of the cash van, Prabhjit, and another gunman Som Pal, who were standing beside the cash van loaded with boxes that carried Rs 70 lakh. The robbers then pulled out a cash box which contained Rs 5 lakh.

Later, at the time of their arrest, two unlicensed .32-bore pistols, an air pistol, around 10 cartridges, three cars, two laptops and other crude weapons, including two axes and a saw, were recovered.

The main accused, Rana, was already facing at least six cases of theft, robberies and carjacking at the Mohali, Sohana, Mataur and Rajpura police stations while Parminder Singh, Chann and Butta too were facing at least two similar cases each at the Rajpura and Mataur police stations.

They used country-made weapons purchased from Uttar Pradesh and were active in cases of theft and carjacking between 2009 and 2012, the police said.