Hyderabad: Police has arrested three suspects while a fourth is absconding, a week after KBS Bank MD Manmath Dalai was shot at by an unidentified assailant. The accused men felt that after the demonetisation, the bank official was keeping a large stocks of currency in his home for illegal cash exchange.
The three are Sheik Abdul Rahman, 30, a resident of Rajendranagar and native of Nellore district, Erva Naresh, a tea master at a canteen in IBM, and M. Rajendar Yadaiah, 27, from Rajendranagar. It turns out that a relative of Dalai’s former driver showed the house to the main robber. The suspects had purchased some weapons from Bihar for the robbery in the city, police said.
Originally, the gang had planned to rob elderly people by threatening them with firearms, in Ameerpet and SR Nagar, but one such plot had failed. Police seized one country-made pistol, 12 live rounds and bikes from the suspects.
Hyderabad commissioner Mahender Reddy said Naresh, cousin of Dalai’s driver Srihari, and the main accused Rahman, had visited KBS Bank at Madhapur a few days before the robbery to withdraw some cash. That’s when the idea of robbery came up.
Rahman asked Naresh about the bank official and his details. Naresh, who had seen the house, gave the details.
“Later, while they were drinking, the men discussed about the possibility of Dalai keeping a huge stocks of cash in his home and planned a robbery. Rahman decided to pose as cop or Income Tax official sent to raid the bank official’s house,” said the commissioner.
But, Rahman was committing a robbery for the first time. When he reached the victim’s place pretending to be an official, Dalai asked for the official ID card. Suddenly, Rahman ran out and started firing.
According to police, the accused men had in the past purchased two pistols from Sitakund, Mungeri in Bihar, to commit robbery. Police suspects one weapon is with another accused, Manne Venkata Ratnam, who is at large.
Couple locked themselves in a room, robber escaped
On December 18 afternoon, when the shooting started, Manmath Dalai and his wife ran into their room and locked themselves up.
“The first shot hit the wall. As the two ran into their room, the robber again fired hitting Dalai’s thigh. The couple went inside the bathroom and locked themselves up so that the robber won’t be able to break in two doors,” said an investigation official.
The robber panicked and ran out of the apartment. “Rahman took an auto and went to Mehdipatnam where he met the second accused Naresh. He then travelled first to Rajahmundry, then to Madurai and then Kerala before returning to Secunderabad,” said a probe official.
