Hyderabad: Hyderabad police was continuing extensive search operations to nab a six-member gang of thieves who made an unsuccessful attempt at looting gold from the Muthoot Finance company in the city yesterday.
A large number of policemen, led by the Joint Commissioner of police, Shahnawaz Khasim, searched My Home township at Rajinder Nagar until the wee hours after a vehicle used by the robbers was found parked there. Hundreds of armed commandos from the Octopus unit of the police also took part in the search operations as the township had 700 flats.
The police seized two sharp-edged weapons from the vehicle. The Tavera vehicle had a fake Telangana number plate even though it was from Gujar. “We suspect that the gang also hails from Gujarat and it [the members of the gang were] was armed with pistols,” a senior police official said.
Assistant Commissioner of police (ACP) Ganga Reddy said the gang was not able to flee from the city and was still in Hyderabad. “Twenty teams have been formed to hunt the dacoits.”
The gang had entered the Muthoot Finance office at Mylardevpalli on Tuesday morning on the pretext of taking a loan against gold. As they whipped out pistols and knives to threaten the staff, the branch manager, Abdul Lateef, started shouting from the window and attracted the attention of outsiders who rushed into the office. A staff member also pressed an alarm button to alert the police.
The thieves became panicky and fled in a getaway vehicle. However, the police managed to get clear pictures thanks to CCTV cameras and sealed all the exit points in the city.
This is the third time that the robbers have targeted Muthoot Finance branches in and around Hyderabad. While first two attempts were successful, the presence of mind shown by the branch manager saved the situation this time.
“Criminals were choosing the Muthoot Finance because they have less security”, said the ACP.
