Armed assailants loot bank in Mathura; flee with Rs 21 lakh cash

Amid a nationwide lockdown to contain COVID-19 infections, four armed assailants robbed a rural bank in Mathura on Tuesday and decamped with over Rs 21 lakh cash, officials said.

The four robbers looted Damodarpura branch of Gramin Bank of Aryavarta in the afternoon when only three staff members were present, they said.

A bank staff Narendra Chaudhary was among those present in the branch when the incident took place.

Chaudhary said one masked person entered the bank branch and put a gun to his head.

Soon after, three other people came inside the bank and pointed pistols at assistant manager Neelam Singh and cashier Srishti Saxena, threatening them to stay quiet, he said.

Chaudhary said the assailants then took their mobile phones and locked him with the assistant manager in the washroom.

Then they forced the cashier to open the strong room and later fled with Rs 21,07,127 cash, Chaudhary, a Bank Mitra, said.

Mathura SSP Gaurav Grover told reporters that five police teams have been formed to solve the case and the bank's CCTV footage is being examined.

All the entry and exit points of the area have been sealed, however, the looters are yet to be traced, the senior superintendent of police said.

After receiving information, Inspector General Satish Ganesh also reached the spot and issued guidelines of action to the district police.