HMT employee robbed of Rs 4 lakh

Tribune News Service

Panchkula, April 20

In yet another broad daylight heist, an HMT employee was robbed of Rs 4 lakh by four unidentified youths while he was on his way home after withdrawing the amount from Punjab National Bank at the HMT, Pinjore, here today.

The victim, Mangat Sharma, had withdrawn his savings of 20 years for his daughter's marriage, scheduled for next Monday. The money had to be paid to the caterers and other people hired for the wedding arrangements. He lost his 20 years' savings in a minute.

Sharma was on his bike and had stopped near a chemist shop, Hind Medicos, for buying medicines when the youths, who were on two bikes, targeted him.

This is the second such incident reported from Panchkula in the past 20 days. On March 30, a petrol pump owner, Raj Kumar, was robbed of Rs 4 lakh when he was going to a bank in Sector 8 to deposit the amount.

The police have got the CCTV footage from the bank in which one of the four youths (all believed to be aged between 35 and 40) is seen sitting in the bank observing Sharma make the transactions. The three others were waiting outside. Of the four youths, two snatched the cash from him. The suspects appeared to be from Uttar Pradesh, said the police.

Sharma withdrew the cash from the bank at 10.19 am. At 10.25 am, he moved out of the bank while the robbery took place at 10.41 am.

"After purchasing the medicines from the chemist shop, situated about 40 metres away from the bank, the victim had kept the money on the oil tank of the bike when two youths, one of whom was wearing a helmet, snatched the cash and fled,” said the SHO of the Pinjore police station, Inspector Ved Prakash.

Panchkula DCP Hamid Akhtar rushed to the crime spot. “In this case, the bank has also been found wanting. There was no security guard, the CCTV cameras were not functioning on real time and there was no person to keep a watch on the entry of suspicious persons,” the DCP said.

CCTV grab

A CCTV grab shows one of the four youths sitting inside the bank observing Sharma. He then goes out and readies his accomplices. Two of them then snatch the cash.

 Notice to be served on bank

• Despite instructions by the police to inform them if someone is carrying over Rs 2 lakh, no heed was paid by the resident.
• Bank to be served notice as no guard was deployed in the bank.
• The police arrived 20 minutes after the incident, people said.

No PCR 

Residents said they had requested local MLA Latika Sharma to get a PCR stationed in the area as some girls were teased a few days ago. The MLA had assured them and said she had spoken to the police in this regard. However, there was no PCR there.

Where will I arrange the money for my daughter's wedding: Victim

“This was the only money I had. Now, from where will I arrange the money for my daughter’s wedding,” said the victim, Mangat Sharma, who works with the HMT and has not been getting his salary for the past nine months.

No takers for BankCop

- For the secure transit and storage of cash, the Panchkula Commissioner of Police had created a WhatsApp group for bankers, BankCop, but not even a single person responded to the suggestions of the police on the group.

Timeline

10.19 am: Victim withdraws money from the bank.

10.25 am: Goes to a cooperative society from the bank.

10.35 am: Goes to a chemist shop

10.41 am: Cash snatched

Previous incidents

• March 2015: Petrol pump owner RAJ Kumar shot at and robbed of Rs 10 lakh while he was going to deposit the amount in the bank in Sector 8.
• January 2015: Four men in a white Swift loot Rs 7.5 lakh from a cashier and two other employees of Amartex at Sector 14 when the trio was on their way to deposit the amount in the bank.