Two arrested for robbing diamonds worth Rs 17 crore

Two persons were today arrested for robbing semi-processed diamonds worth around Rs 17 crore here at gunpoint, police said. The incident happened on March 14.

Police identified the arrested accused as Arjun Pandey and Manvendra Thakur, both hailing from Uttar Pradesh, and added that a third man, Mohit Singh Rana, was still at large.

Surat Police Commissioner Satish Sharma said that the looted diamonds belonged to a polishing firm called Glow Star Manufacturing Company, and were robbed at gun point from its manager and another employee when the two were on their way to deposit it in a vault in Katargam locality here.

"On the way to the safe deposit vault, the employees were attacked by a group of robbers who fired a round in the air and snatched the bag containing the diamonds. The employees were also injured in the process," Sharma said.

He said the diamonds were roughly valued at around Rs 17 crore, adding that an exact valuation was not possible because they were semi-processed.

He said that the two were arrested following a manhunt by teams from the crime branch, special operations group and Katargam police.

Sharma informed that the looted diamonds were recovered from Pandey's residence while police were searching for the weapon used during the robbery.

"An FIR was filed at Katargam police station under sections 395, 397 (dacoity), 307 (attempt to murder), 34, and 120 (B) (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC, and other sections of the Arms Act and Gujarat Police Act," an official said.