Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Dec 18: The city crime branch (CCB) police led by inspector Valentine D'Souza have arrested three persons in connection with the attempted daylight robbery by armed men at Muthoottu Mini Finance firm in Suratkal. The incident had occured on December 5.
The arrested are Anil Kumar Y M alias Arhan (29) of Piriyapatna, Mysuru, Prasad (21), a resident of Sakleshpur, and Harish (28), also of Piriyapatna.
On December 5 morning, around five unidentified persons came to Muthoottu Mini Finance and pretending to be customers, started a conversation with a firm staff on gold rates in the market. Meanwhile, one of the accused took out a pistol from his pocket and demanded cash and gold. Even as he was brandishing the pistol, an alert woman official of the firm activated the siren. Frightened by the siren, the accused ran out of the firm and sped away in a blue Maruti Omni in which they had come. The Omni had no number plate.
Based on a complaint filed by K Manohar Shetty of Muthoottu Mini Finance, a case was registered in Suratkal police station. The attempted robbery had left the general public as well as finance firms in a state of fear.
The CCB police who took up the investigation looked for the Omni in several places and succeeded in arresting the accused.
Among the accused, Anil Kumar had worked as a salesman of consumer appliances in Mangaluru and other places. The other two accused had been engaged in petty jobs in the city. The three were friends and had dreamt to become rich overnight, hence they planned to rob a bank or a finance firm and zeroed in on Muthoottu Mini Finance, CCB police said.
Three air guns and two knives which the accused had used in the crime were seized, along with three mobile phones, ropes, adhesive tape, and the Maruti Omni, altogether worth Rs 3,40,000.
Two others accused in the case are still absconding.
The operation was conducted on the directions of police commissioner S Murugan, and guided by DCP Shantaraju (law and order) and DCP Dr Sanjeev Patil (crime). CCB inspector Valentine D'Souza led the operation.