MANGALURU, 17 JAN

A gang of armed robbers looted valuables estimated over Rs 4 crore from the Sahakari Sangh Bank in Kotekar, Mangaluru, on Friday, police said.

This comes close on the heels of two unidentified armed robbers on a bike shooting dead two security guards and fleeing with Rs 93 lakh in cash meant for filling an ATM in Bidar, the northernmost district headquarters of the state, on Thursday.

The Mangaluru heist occurred between 11.30 am and 12.30 pm, with the assailants fleeing in a blue Fiat car, police said.

According to the police, a group of five to six masked men, aged between 25 and 35, entered the bank armed with a pistol, a sword, and a knife.

Providing details of the robbery, the Ullal-Kotekar Mangaluru police stated in a release that the robbers spoke in Hindi and Kannada, threatened the staff, and forced them to open the vault containing gold jewellery and other valuables.

At the time of the incident, four to five employees were present in the bank, but no security guards were on duty, police said.

Police earlier citing preliminary estimates said the stolen items were valued between Rs 10 crore and Rs 12 crore. Later in a release, they clarified it to be over Rs 4 crore.

The police have launched a probe, forming multiple teams to track down the suspects using technical surveillance and other available leads.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who was in the city at the time, was informed of the robbery and immediately convened a meeting with top police officials, including Inspector General of the Western Range Amit Singh, Mangaluru City Police Commissioner Anupam Agarwal, and Superintendent of Police N Yathish.

Speaker of the state legislative assembly and MLA of the constituency, U T Khadar, was also present at the meeting.

Visibly disturbed by the incident, the CM demanded immediate action to apprehend the culprits. He expressed dissatisfaction with how the suspects managed to escape unhindered, questioning potential security lapses at toll booths and instructing officials to tighten checks across all routes.

Following the review, Siddaramaiah ordered heightened surveillance at all toll plazas and a blockade across four districts to prevent the suspects from fleeing further. He directed the law enforcement to ensure arrests and stringent legal action.

Police have intensified investigations, scrutinising CCTV footage along the Kerala border. Inter-district police in Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Hassan, and Shivamogga have also been alerted.

All fisheries roads, major district roads, and state and national highways leading out of the district towards Kerala, Goa, and Bengaluru have been placed under strict vigilance.

As of the time of filing this report, all eight toll booths on the above roads had been alerted, with police personnel stationed at each checkpoint, according to the police.