Bank manager, cashier held at gunpoint in Odisha, Rs 8L looted

At least five armed dacoits looted around Rs 8 lakh from a bank in Mayurbhanj district on Tuesday afternoon.

The incident took place at Gramya Bank's Kuchei branch, located within the jurisdiction of Kuliana police station near Baripada at around 3 pm, inspector-in-charge Madhumita Mohanty said.

According to the police complaint, as many as five masked assailants entered the bank and held branch manager Ranjita Soren and cashier Suryaprava Mallick at gunpoint and brandishing sharp-edged weapons. The miscreants forced the bank staff to open the strong room by creating an atmosphere of fear and panic.

The robbers, who wore black sunglasses and face coverings, reportedly communicated in Hindi and Bengali, raising suspicions that they may be criminals from neighboring Jharkhand.

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According to preliminary information, the robbers looted between Rs 7 to Rs 8 lakh in cash. They also took the bank’s hard disk, likely in an attempt to destroy evidence of their crime. After locking the bank staff and customers inside a room, the gang fled the scene with the looted cash on two motorcycles.

Police investigation

Local police from Kuliana reached the spot shortly after the incident and have launched a detailed investigation into the robbery.

Eight customers were present in the bank at the time, all of whom were also threatened by the dacoits, police said.

DIG Eastern Range Satyajit Nayak and SP Mayurbhanj Varun Guntupalli visited the spot to intensify the investigation.