Bhubaneswar: Three notorious criminals of an inter-state gang allegedly involved in bank ATM thefts in Odisha and other parts of the country were nabbed by police in Bhubaneswar early on Sunday.
Police said that one of the gang members, identified as Deepak Kumar (25) of Bihar, was caught first following an encounter near Badagada in Bhubaneswar. Subsequently, his associates Deepak Kumar Pandey (24) and Abhikesh Kumar Singh (32), who hail from Bihar and Jharkhand respectively, were also apprehended.
Deepak Kumar suffered a bullet wound in his left leg in the exchange of fire with Commissionerate Police’s special squad on an isolated stretch of Puri new bypass road near Kesura within Badagada police limits at around 3 am. They initially attempted to escape in an unregistered car, suspected to be stolen and opened fire on police during the subsequent chase. Deepak was later admitted to AIIMS Bhubaneswar for treatment.
Commissioner of Police, Bhubaneswar-Cuttack, S Deva Dutta Singh, said the criminals were active in various parts of the country, including Odisha. “They were habitual offenders specialising in ATM tampering and theft of cash. They previously committed an ATM theft in Ranchi, Jharkhand in January. They were also wanted by Ranchi police,” he said.
The CP said that Deepak has multiple cases registered against him in various police stations.
The modus operandi of the criminals involved using adhesive inside ATM cash dispensers while they waited outside. They also put up one mobile number in ATM counter as helpline number of the bank. When a customer struggles to remove the card due to the adhesive after withdrawing cash and seeks help on the helpline number, they would collect the password and other bank and card details of the customer. Once the customer leaves the ATM counter, the accused persons, using sharp knife, would pull out the card from the slot of the ATM and withdraw cash, he elaborated.
Singh said that it is suspected that they were in Odisha for the last three days and were planning ATM thefts in Puri and Bhubaneswar.
A country-made 7.65 mm semi-automatic pistol, one round live ammunition, two fired cartridges, a car, Rs 12,000 in cash, three mobile phones, adhesives, 12 ATM cards, a knife and other incriminating articles were also seized from them.
Further investigation is underway to ascertain involvement of others in the racket, he added.
