Crime Shock: Two Killed in broad-daylight robbery attempt at jewellery store in Odisha
Bhubaneswar: In a chilling incident of violent robbery, two people were killed when armed assailants opened fire during a botched loot attempt at a jewellery showroom in Panikoili, Odisha’s Jajpur district, on Saturday afternoon.
The victims were identified as Nilamadhab Panda, an electrician, and Sunil Ray, a salesman at Panda Alankar jewellery showroom.
Reports suggest that Niamadhab was killed as he came under the indiscriminate firing of the culprits as the locals tried to overpower them following the loot bid. Ray, on the other hand, was fatally shot as he attempted to resist the armed robbers.
Two other showroom employees sustained serious gunshot wounds and were rushed to the hospital in critical condition, according to authorities.
Eyewitnesses report that a gang of four robbers, who arrived on motorbikes posing as customers, attempted to loot the jewellery store. The robbery quickly escalated when the employees resisted, and the criminals opened fire, leading to the deaths. In the chaos, locals tried to overpower the robbers, managing to capture two suspects, while the other two managed to flee the scene.
The area was left in shock as bystanders gathered around the chaotic scene, with a pistol and spent bullet casings scattered on the ground. Law enforcement, including Jajpur Superintendent of Police (SP) Yashpratap Shrimal, arrived promptly and took the apprehended suspects into custody. A manhunt was underway for the two robbers who escaped, with police working to determine what was stolen in the attempted heist.
The terrifying daylight attack underscores the growing menace of armed robberies in Odisha. Just a day earlier, a similar violent robbery took place at the Manappuram Gold Loan office in Sambalpur, where armed criminals escaped with 28 kilograms of gold worth crores of rupees after holding staff and customers at gunpoint.