Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Nov 22: In a major breakthrough, Bengaluru Police have solved the high-profile ATM cash-van robbery within 60 hours of the incident announcing arrest of a police constable and two others and recovery of Rs 5.76 crore in connection with the biggest broad-day heist where Rs 7.11 crore was robbed from a van carrying cash for replenishing ATMs.
The robbery that took place on Tuesday involving a CMS-operated cash vehicle carrying Rs 7.11 crore was found to be a well-planned insider-assisted heist. At around 12:48 pm, the CMS cash van was intercepted near Ashoka Pillar-Jayanagar Dairy Circle by robbers posing as RBI officials. The gang threatened the staff at gunpoint, seized the cash boxes, and abandoned the vehicle by 1:16 pm. A case was registered at Siddapura Police Station.
The arrested have been identified as Annappa Naik, a police constable with Govindapura police station in Bengaluru East, Xavier, a former employee of CMS Info Systems that was handling the ATM cash-loading van, and Gopi, an employee at CMS. The Bengaluru City Police Commissioner Seemant Kumar Singh said a gang of six to eight members was involved in the crime, and they have launched a massive manhunt in many South Indian states to catch the remaining accused.
Throughout the entire operation, no mobile phones were used, eliminating the possibility of electronic tracking, and there was a delay in reporting the crime by the CMS staff, he added.
Singh said the gang had planned the heist for more than three months and had done recce for 15 days before executing their plan.
The CMS staff arrested was responsible for tracking and coordinating van movements and is suspected of leaking crucial information while the former CMS employee was believed to have shared operational procedures and insider knowledge while the police constable allegedly provided ground support and intelligence. These arrests confirmed insider involvement at multiple levels.
Police revealed that the gang spent three months planning the robbery. They conducted continuous recce of the cash van route and studied and exploited CCTV blind spots along the corridor. They also used multiple vehicles and changed registration number plates repeatedly and avoided mobile phones to prevent police tracking. The accused communicated in various languages to mislead investigators.
Officers suspect that 6-8 individuals were part of the larger operation, including logistics handlers, spotters, and money movers. “All the accused are from Bengaluru. We won’t be able to share the exact details of the roles of each accused, but this is a serious case. We have called the heads of the CMS company to discuss the lapses to ensure this doesn’t happen again,” Mr Singh told reporters on Saturday.
“We have recovered some trunks in which cash was stored. The ex-employee had left the company about a year ago but was still in touch with people at the company. All three arrested accused and the others involved have had major roles,” he added. Over 30 people were interrogated across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Goa.
Early leads emerged within 24 hours, helping trace movements of the accused and the vehicles used after uncovering clues indicating towards a possible insider link, following which they detained a police officer and one other person. The police said the CMS cash van had also violated multiple RBI safety norms, increasing vulnerability. One vehicle used in the heist has also been seized. The Bengaluru Police team that cracked the case has been awarded a Rs 5 lakh cash reward by the police commissioner.
One of the major clues was the mobile tower data from the robbery location. On analysis of the active mobile numbers in the area, the police discovered that the constable and the former CMS employee had called each other several times during the heist.
Further probe into the call detail records of the two showed consistent communication between both accused in the days leading up to the crime. Another crucial lead was the getaway vehicle used by the accused, which was found abandoned near Tirupati in Chittoor district.
AS per the details of the incident, on November 19, a gang, posing as Income Tax and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) officers, intercepted the ATM cash-loading vehicle near Ashoka Pillar at 12.48 pm and made off with Rs 7.11 crore on the Dairy Circle Flyover. The criminals took control of the cash boxes and abandoned the van by 1.16 pm before fleeing the scene. Following verification of the incident, a case of dacoity by showing firearms was registered at Siddapura Police Station.
Singh said the criminals made multiple calculated stops exclusively in areas without CCTV coverage, avoiding any digital footprint. Gang members deliberately communicated in multiple languages to mislead investigators about their origins and identities. The operation involved multiple vehicles with frequent changes in number plates and identifiers, making vehicle tracking extremely challenging. Adding to the complexity, the stolen currency notes had not been serialized by the issuing bank, virtually eliminating the possibility of tracing them through banking channels, he added.
The operation was led by 11 Police Inspectors and 2 Assistant Commissioners of Police from South Division, along with 6 PIs from the Crime Branch (CCB), all supervised by senior officers. Investigation teams pursued technical and field leads across Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana, with some teams extending their coverage to Goa. More than 30 individuals were questioned as part of the probe.
A police officer said Gopi was the mastermind who chalked out the movement and route in which the cash would be transported for CMS. “As he was part of the gang, it became easier for the gang to conduct the robbery. The precise knowledge of CCTV blind spots indicates extensive reconnaissance and planning,” the officer added.
Singh also said that there were lapses from CMS as they had flouted several RBI guidelines, including the GPS location equipment that was not working. “According to the RBI, the cash movement route must often be changed so that it does not become predictable. But with the inside staff part of the crime, it became easier,” he added. Xavier was also involved in a similar offence in the KG Halli police limits previously and was sent to jail. A year ago, he had met with an accident. Annappa Naik trained the gang on how to execute without leaving any clue,” a police officer said.