Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
What initially appeared to be a routine bank robbery has turned into a story straight out of a crime thriller. A Rs 50 lakh daylight heist at an SBI branch in Surat on April 27 has led police to an alleged ethical hacker, encrypted Signal chats and a meticulously planned operation.
Surat Police said the breakthrough came after a sustained multi-state operation spanning nearly 7,000 kilometres, leading to the arrest of the alleged mastermind, Vikas Kumar alias Chandan, and his associate Sanjit alias Sachin, who had reportedly sheltered him.
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The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has arrested seven people in connection with the case so far. However, only Rs 2.7 lakh has been recovered out of the Rs 50 lakh looted.
HI-TECH COORDINATED ROBBERY
Investigators said the robbery was not a spontaneous crime but a carefully planned operation involving multiple accused communicating through the encrypted Signal app and operating in a highly coordinated manner without knowing each other personally.
Chandan, a Muzaffarpur native who had completed an ethical hacking course, was familiar with Surat after having lived in the city earlier. Police said he used this knowledge, along with digital tools and surveillance mapping, to plan the operation, including studying CCTV coverage, bank layouts via Google Maps, and physical reconnaissance across the city.
Officials said the initial plan was allegedly conceived by an inmate, Kundan Bhagat, who, while in jail, communicated via Signal with his cousin Chandan and instructed him to execute the robbery and coordinate with another associate, Alex alias Sumit Gandhi.
The gang had shortlisted three SBI branches, with the Long Hanuman Road branch eventually selected due to its location and timing considerations, including reduced police movement around election-related duties. Local body polls were underway in Gujarat in April.
A BOTCHED OPERATION
On the day of the incident, the accused reportedly visited the branch, but the plan failed as the lockers could not be accessed. Consequently, the suspects fled across multiple states, frequently changing phones and SIM cards to avoid detection.
Police said the accused travelled through several locations including Bharuch, Ahmedabad and Bihar, before their eventual arrest in a forested border area between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu after sustained surveillance and intelligence gathering operations.
Authorities added that the team used technical tracking, video call monitoring and local inputs to trace their location. During the operation, four mobile phones and SIM cards were also recovered.
Further investigation is underway to trace the remaining accused and recover the remaining stolen money. Police said additional arrests are likely as the probe continues.
– Ends
(With inputs from Sanjay Rathod)
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
