BENGALURU: Close on the heels of a serving CCB policeman and a retired DySP’s arrest following their involvement in dacoity cases, two more policemen attached to Girinagar police station are in the dock for allegedly robbing a woman advocate of Rs 8 lakh on Friday. Both of them along with one more person have been arrested by the police in this regard.
Mayura, a head constable, and Raghava Kumar, a constable, are the arrested policemen, while the other accused is identified as Krishnamurthy, a caterer. The alleged incident took place on Friday night at Seetha Circle in Girinagar police station limits.
According to the complainant, Sukanya, an advocate who resides near Majestic, she was going in an auto rickshaw to give Rs 8 lakh (in old currencies) to a relative in Padamanabhanagar. Around 9 pm, two constables stopped the rickshaw at Seetha Circle and under the pretext of conducting a search and took away the money. While one policeman took the money with him, another policeman took her to the station under the pretext of enquiry. She was made to sit in the station till 1.30 am on Saturday and was not let to talk to any senior officers, despite repeated requests. Later, the policeman dropped her at her house.
On Saturday, the advocate had approached city Police Commissioner, N. S. Megharikh, and filed a formal complaint, following which the top cop directed DCP (South) Dr S.D. Sharanappa to conduct an inquiry into the matter. The police launched a probe and arrested the two policemen and Krishnamurthy on Sunday.
“During preliminary investigation, the involvement of two staff of Girinagar police station in connivance with one, Krishnamurthy, was found. We have recovered Rs 6.74 lakh (Rs 1.30 lakh from Raghava Kumar and Rs 5.44 lakh from Krishnamurthy) from the arrested persons. The case has been transferred to ACP Chamarajpet sub division for further investigation. The two policemen have been suspended with immediate effect,” Sharanappa said.
Sources said that the two policemen got information about the woman carrying money from accused Krishnamurthy. “Krishnamurthy runs a catering business and his office is near the police station. He was also working as a police informant. He got information that the woman advocate was bringing a big amount in old currency to exchange it from a person in Padmanabhanagar. He passed on the information to the policemen and they hatched a plot to rob her. The accused assumed it was black money and hence the advocate would not approach police,” a police source said.
After the robbery, the cops had gone absconding and did not report for work on Saturday. The police gathered information about them and also convinced them to not get into more trouble by evading arrest, sources said.
“There were no complaints about the two staff arrested. The development has shocked us. Both hailed from Ramanagar and traveled everyday to work,” a policeman working in Girinagar station said.
