Thane police solve Rs 9 crore robbery case, arrest 7

On Thursday, Thane police arrested seven of the ten masked robbers who looted over Rs 9 crore from a private firm’s office in Thane. The seven arrested include a staffer and a former employee of the Vadodara-based Checkmate Cash Management Services.

According to police, the robbery was planned by the former employee, identified as Chavan, who left his job about 6 months ago and was responsible for stapling cash bundles at the time of employment.

Chavan tried to lure Karle, a staffer of the firm, for the heist. Unable to resist the temptation of making easy money, Karle agreed to be a part of the plan. A third member of the gang, Wagh, was responsible for roping in a few others who could help them execute the robbery.

On Monday, the three prime accused hired three SUVs from a tour operator under the guise of a pilgrim trip to Shirdi.

Around 3.30 am on Tuesday, the gang barged into the company’s office at Hiradeep Building, near Thane Mental Hospital. A total of Rs 26 crore was stacked in the company’s office. The robbers, who had bought three 50-litre barrels along, stuffed as much money as they could fit in them and fled from the office. They also took away few cellphones and a CCTV recorder with over 90 days of footage in it.

With one barrel each in a car, the robbers headed to three different locations, namely Nashik, Mumbai and Thane.

By tracking the locations of the stolen phones to Nashik, Kalbadevi and Thane, Thane police managed to nab seven gang members. The police have recovered Rs 3 crore stolen money and also seized the three SUVs used in the robbery.

The search for the remaining accused is underway.