1 person detained, vehicle seized in connection with Rs 9-crore heist

The Thane police has detained a person and seized a vehicle in connection with the '9-crore heist in a cash management company. Officials said the man detained was present during the dacoity and the vehicle was used during the robbery.

The development comes a day after seven to eight unidentified robbers barged into the office of Checkmate Services Pvt Ltd. The firm deals in cash collection and distribution by collecting the daily earning from retail outlets of major companies based in malls and shopping centres and then delivering it to the nominated banks.

While the officials first estimated that '5 crore was stolen, a final estimate revealed that '9.16 crore was looted from the firm. The robbers held the security guards and employees at knifepoint and stuffed the bundles of cash into sacks and fled.

Sources in the Thane police revealed on Wednesday night that the police detained one person, who was allegedly part of the heist. “The robbers used three vehicles in the incident and on Wednesday we were able to seize a vehicle from the detainee,” said an officer, who did not wish to reveal his name. “The seized vehicle is a car and matches with the one visible in the CCTV footage that we obtained from nearby areas,” he added.

The officer also said that the man was being questioned to determine his exact role and also the whereabouts of the others.

Investigators suspect that the robbers had inside help as they knew the layout of the office and the heist was well timed. “The robber knew exactly where the CCTV console was and hence, as soon as they entered the office, they disconnected the same by snapping the wires. They also took away the digital video recorders, which store the footage, which is indicative that they had prior knowledge about the layout of the place,” an investigator said.

Sources added that on Wednesday, nearly 25 people were questioned. “We are going through the list of former employees and also quizzing current ones. The CCTV footage of the neighbourhood shows the model of the vehicle used but the registration number is not visible,” another officer added.