Mangaluru bank heist: One of 3 arrested is missing link for 2016 Navi Mumbai robbery

“Several members of the Navi Mumbai pack progressive successful the 2016 robbery astatine Popular Finance are progressive successful the Mangaluru robbery,” said sources acquainted with investigations.

Yosuva Rajendran, 35, the 2nd idiosyncratic arrested successful the Mangaluru robbery lawsuit was linked to the 2016 robbery but not arrested, they added.

Court records from Mumbai for the 2016 equipped robbery bespeak that 12 people, including Murugandi Thevar, were arrested for the crime. The 12 are presently nether proceedings for offences nether the Indian Penal Code sections for dacoity, transgression conspiracy, the Arms Act and the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). All of them person been released connected bail.

However, the tribunal records besides bespeak that the Maharashtra Police were looking for Yosuva Rajendran alias Prakash arsenic helium was suspected to beryllium progressive successful the 2016 robbery but helium remained elusive. “One of the accused Yosuva Pakya @ Prakash is inactive absconding,” the authorities authoritative told a peculiar tribunal for MCOCA cases successful 2023 during a bail hearing.

Thevar who was arrested connected February 27, 2018 for the Navi Mumbai robbery was released connected bail connected September 2, 2021.

Thevar drove from Mumbai to Mangaluru aft tribunal appearance

On January 15, 2 days earlier helium was progressive successful the Mangaluru robbery, Thevar made an quality successful a Mumbai tribunal successful transportation with the 2016 robbery case, records indicate.

A CCTV drawback of 1 of the accused astatine a toll plaza escaping aft the crime. (Express Photo)

After his tribunal quality successful Mumbai, Thevar is alleged to person driven 900 km to Mangaluru successful a Fiat car with immoderate of immoderate of the pack members to execute the latest robbery. He is alleged to person changed the archetypal Maharashtra fig sheet to a fake Karnataka fig sheet connected entering Karnataka.

The way of the car and images of the car and its operator captured astatine toll plazas during the 900 km travel and its consequent exit from Mangaluru played a important relation successful the cracking of the lawsuit on with quality inputs and method analysis, sources said.

“We were capable to retrieve the car utilized for the transgression – the Fiat car. It has a Maharashtra registration. The main accused Thevar drove the car from Mumbai to Mangalore and helium drove the car backmost to Tirunelveli,” Anupam Agrawal, Mangaluru Police Commissioner, said connected January 20 aft the apprehension of Thevar, Yosuva and a 3rd accused Kannan Mani, 35.

“In this lawsuit a Mumbai-based pack has been recovered to beryllium involved. Three persons who are natives of Tamil Nadu and surviving successful Mumbai person been arrested. They person travel with immoderate of their associates and committed the robbery. After the robbery they escaped to Tamil Nadu via Kerala,” the constabulary commissioner said.

Prior to the Navi Mumbai robbery, Thevar was besides accused successful a 2013 equipped robbery lawsuit wherever Rs 30 lakh was allegedly stolen from the accountant of an concern institution successful Mulund, Mumbai. Thevar was acquitted successful this lawsuit successful June 2016.

Within 2 months of acquittal, helium was allegedly progressive successful the Popular Finance heist.

Similar modus operandi successful Navi Mumbai, Mangaluru robberies

In a akin modus operandi arsenic the latest Mangaluru case, a pack of astir six masked men equipped with weapons barged into the Popular Finance bureau successful Navi Mumbai astir 3 p.m. connected August 6, 2016 and took distant 20 kg of golden and Rs 9.5 lakh successful cash. They escaped successful a achromatic Maruti Swift car that was allegedly driven by Thevar.
In the Mangaluru case, a pack of six equipped and masked men arrived astatine the slope astatine astir 1 p.m. connected January 17 and took distant an estimated 12 kg of golden and currency valued successful the scope of Rs 10 crore.
The 3 suspects – Murugandi, Yosuva and Mani – were arrested 3 days aboriginal successful Tirunelveli.
“Our teams went to Mumbai, and aft collecting accusation went to Tirunelveli successful Tamil Nadu. Using technological and quality quality we were capable to constrictive down to 2 offenders who were the kingpins of the gang,” said commissioner Agrawal.

Stolen golden successful Mangaluru lawsuit efficaciously recovered

Unlike the Navi Mumbai lawsuit wherever the constabulary managed to retrieve lone astir 2 kg of stolen golden aft the 12 arrests that were dispersed implicit 5 years, the swift probe of the Karnataka Police has led to the betterment of astir each the golden stolen from the Mangaluru cooperative bank.

The investigators successful the Popular Finance robbery lawsuit recovered the bulk of the golden – 1,490 grams – from Muthukumar Cherman Nadar, who initially offered to beryllium a witnesser but was aboriginal recovered to beryllium an alleged subordinate of the slope robbery pack who received the stolen golden from his pack person Arputaraj Nadar.

Although 2.5 kg of golden was alleged to person been fixed to Thevar during the organisation of the loot, lone astir 185 grams of golden was recovered, according to tribunal records.

The Mangaluru constabulary commissioner said this week that “two gunny sacks successful which they had taken distant jewellery” had been recovered.

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said connected Thursday that astir the full stolen spot had been recovered. He besides said the constabulary were making efforts to find the others progressive successful the crime.

“There are six radical who are suspected to person been straight progressive successful the robbery. Three person been arrested. Nearly Rs 10 crore to Rs 11 crore of golden and currency was stolen and astir each of it has been recovered,” Minister Parameshwara said.

Sources said that constabulary were looking astatine the relation of section informants who alerted the pack astir the anemic information concern astatine the Kotekar cooperative slope and the magnitude of gold. In the Popular Finance lawsuit of 2016, 1 of the arrested, Dharmaraj Nadar, is alleged to person tipped the pack astir the prospects of robbing the firm.

The 3rd accused successful the Mangaluru lawsuit – Kannan Mani – who was fired astatine by the Mangaluru constabulary connected January 21 erstwhile helium allegedly tried to fly portion being brought to the metropolis – is besides reported to person transgression antecedents. The relation of a Keralite is besides being investigated successful the Mangaluru case, sources said.

“They whitethorn beryllium progressive successful different crimes. They are nonrecreational slope robbers and it is evident from the mode the transgression was carried out. But with whose assistance they person done it is to beryllium investigated,” the Mangaluru Police Commissioner said earlier this week.