Surat: Accused held in Rs 50 lakh bank robbery case shot in leg by police after he opens fire

City crime branch police had arrested two accused from Uttar Pradesh in connection with the April 27 bank robbery, in which a total of seven individuals were involved, Deputy Commissioner of Police Bhavesh Rojiya said.

A man arrested for allegedly looting Rs 50 lakh from a State Bank of India (SBI) branch in Gujarat's Surat with other gang members, was shot in his leg by the police here on Friday after he opened fire at them in a bid to escape, officials said. City crime branch police had arrested two accused from Uttar Pradesh in connection with the April 27 bank robbery, in which a total of seven individuals were involved, Deputy Commissioner of Police Bhavesh Rojiya said. The two accused -- Shubham Thakur and Vikas Singh -- were arrested from Ayodhya and Gonda in Uttar Pradesh on May 4 in connection with the robbery of Rs 50 lakh from the SBI's Varachha branch in Surat, he said. ''Thakur was remanded in police custody for seven days. During this period, he was taken to the location, where he had hidden a motorcycle, a pistol and a mobile phone, for reconstruction of the crime scene,'' Rojiya added. Fearing that being a notorious criminal previously arrested for murder, he might face severe legal repercussions in this case, Thakur tried to escape by firing one round at the police using the same weapon he had hidden at the spot, the DCP said. ''He fired one round at the police in a bid to escape and tried to run when the crime branch ACP immediately returned fire, which struck him in his leg. The accused was then shifted to a hospital for treatment,'' Rojiya said. The incident occurred on the outskirts of Kanyasi village, the police said. The police were trying to recover the weapon as part of investigation into the incident. During his police custody, Thakur had confessed that he had hidden the pistol and a mobile phone used in committing the robbery near a farm at the village, sources said. According to police, a gang of armed robbers had looted Rs 50 lakh cash from the SBI branch in a daylight heist by threatening the bank employees at gunpoint. CCTV footage showed the presence of five accused persons. The perpetrators snatched the mobile phones of the bank customers and employees to prevent them from alerting the police in a timely manner, and they also disabled the alarm system.