Odisha ATM Heist: Six Arrested for Digging Out Machine, Dumping It in Canal
The CCTV footage from the scene proved pivotal, showing masked miscreants forcefully uprooting the cash-loaded machine before making their getaway. The footage provided critical leads, ultimately leading to their capture.
Bhubaneswar: In a dramatic breakthrough, Odisha police on Saturday announced they had cracked an audacious ATM heist that had stunned Bhubaneswar residents in the early hours of January 24. Six individuals, including two with serious criminal records, have been arrested in connection with the crime.
"We have apprehended six persons linked to the ATM loot case. Two of them have past criminal records, including murder. We seized Rs 1.6 lakh in cash, a vehicle, and several incriminating tools from their possession. Interestingly, the same gang had orchestrated a similar ATM robbery in 2022 using an identical method,” revealed Twin City Police Commissioner Suresh Dev Datta Singh during a press briefing.
The suspects allegedly dismantled an ATM in the Sriram Nagar locality, hauled it onto a stolen auto-rickshaw, and later abandoned the empty machine in the Gangua Canal near Samantarapur. Their attempt to erase evidence, however, was futile—CCTV cameras had already captured their every move.
"Security personnel play a crucial role in protecting ATMs, but many in Bhubaneswar are in isolated locations with inadequate surveillance, poor network connectivity, and minimal police patrols," former DCP-Bhubaneswar Pinak Mishra had previously warned.
The CCTV footage from the scene proved pivotal, showing masked miscreants forcefully uprooting the cash-loaded machine before making their getaway. The footage provided critical leads, ultimately leading to their capture.
