Bengaluru Police crack ₹7.11-crore ATM cash van heist; insider, rogue constable among 3 arrested
Bengaluru:
In a major breakthrough, the Bengaluru City Police have solved the sensational ₹7.11-crore ATM cash van robbery that shook the city earlier this week.
Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh on Friday confirmed the arrest of three key accused — including Gopal Prasad, an employee of Cash Management Services (CMS), Xavier, who is a former CMS staffer, and Annappa Naik, a serving police constable — describing the crime as a “smartly-executed, insider-driven heist”.
The police have recovered ₹5.76 crore of the stolen cash, which was taken away in four boxes during the robbery on 19 November, under the jurisdiction of Siddapura police station.
“Legal procedures are complete and we will take custody of the accused for further interrogation. We suspect more people may have been involved,” Singh said.
Meticulous planning, no initial clues
According to the Commissioner, the gang conducted three months of planning and 15 days of reconnaissance, ensuring that the crime left “no direct clues”.
The robbers used a Toyota Innova with a fake registration plate, allegedly posing as a government vehicle.
They intercepted the CMS cash van near Ashok Pillar, a CCTV blind spot, and convinced the security staff and custodians — referred to by Singh as “RBI officers” — that they were being taken for an internal enquiry. There was no resistance.
One of the accused then sat inside the cash van and diverted it toward Dairy Circle, another location with limited camera visibility. The cash was transferred into the Innova at a spot without CCTV coverage, after which the gang regrouped near NIMHANS and fled.
The Innova was later traced to the outskirts of Bengaluru. Singh however did not name the location where the cash was found, stating the investigation is still ongoing.
200 officers deployed across 4 states
Singh said the robbery was “a big challenge” because it occurred in broad daylight, and because the gang had made efforts to erase technical and physical evidence.
However, 11 police teams — comprising nearly 200 officers — worked around the clock for two days, pursuing leads across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Goa through CCTV tracking, local intelligence and technical surveillance.
“We were determined to crack the case. The amount was huge, and such a robbery in daytime had never happened in the city. Our officers worked day and night,” the Commissioner said, emphasising the significant contribution of the DCP teams.
Investigation continues
Police have so far interrogated 30 individuals, and suspect additional participants who may have helped plan or execute the heist.
The arrested constable, posted in Govindpura, is alleged to have helped the criminals with local knowledge and confidence required to mislead the CMS staff.
Officers are now verifying whether the team had exploited loopholes in GPS mapping and routing guidelines issued by the RBI, and whether the cash van’s adherence to fixed routes made it vulnerable.