Bengaluru: Chaos erupted on Wednesday afternoon when the driver of a van carrying cash to an ATM decided to drive away with the vehicle. He carried out this brazen act under the noses of the bank officials waiting for him outside the machine. The incident took place on Kempegowda Road, under Upparpet police station limits. The driver has been identified as Dominic Selvaraj, 45, a contract employee of Secure Transit Company, that is subleased to a registered cash logistics ferrying firm named Logi Cash in Cox Town.
Police said, Logi Cash has been given the responsibility of ferrying loads of cash between banks or to their respective ATMs. The firm has outsourced its drivers and security gunmen from another company called Secure Transit, which is also based in Cox Town.
Selvaraj, the accused, reported to work on Wednesday morning at Logi Cash and was assigned a security gunman named Chaman Lal. Two other Logi Cash employees, Shivakumar and Salim accompanied them in the Tata 207, a modified, cash-ferrying vehicle. They reached Kotak Mahindra Bank in Nagarthpet and collected Rs 5 lakh. Then, they proceeded to State Bank of India (SBI) on JC Road, where Shivakumar and Salim collected Rs 2 crore. Later, Rs 68 lakh from this amount was given to another Logi employee, to be taken to a different bank / ATM. The remainder, Rs. 1.37 crore, was to be taken to Bank of India on KG Road.
The vehicle arrived outside BOI at around 1.30 pm. Security guard Chaman Lal left his loaded gun inside the vehicle and went to the bank’s restroom, police said. Shivakumar and Salim stepped inside the bank to ask officials whether they had to ferry cash or deposit in their ATMs. In the meantime, Dominic Selvaraj, who was waiting outside, simply drove the cash van away!
Chaman Lal, the security officer came out of the restroom and found the van missing. The three employees still at the scene told their senior, one Prashanth Shetty, who informed the police. Messages were flashed to all city police stations including the jurisdictional Upparpet police who rushed to the spot and conducted their investigations.
According to bank officials and the police, Rs 1.36 crore was in the denomination of Rs 2000s and Rs 1 lakh was in the denomination of Rs 100s.
It was a well-planned execution and cops present at the spot were stumped. Despite verifying CCTV evidence, they soon lost track of the van as it didn’t have GPS. Police have gathered the personal details of the driver and have launched a manhunt for him and the cash van. Dominic Selvaraj has been working with Secure Transit for a month and is a resident of Lingarajpuram. His wife who had just returned from Dubai on November 17, has been detained. Upparpet police have registered a case have formed four teams and are on the hunt for Dominic and the cash van.
How the drama unfolded
10.00 am: All ATM cash vans arrive at Logi Cash in Cox Town
10:30 am: All vans gets dispatched with two-member Logi cash officials along with a driver and a gunman.
11.15 am: Dominic Selvaraj’s van reaches Kotak Mahindra on Nagarathpet Road. Logi Cash employees collects Rs 5 lakhs from the bank.
11.35 am: The van reaches State Bank of India on JC Road and the Logi Cash employees collect Rs 2 cr.
12.15 pm: From the van Rs 68 lakhs is given to another Logi cash employee for ferrying to a different bank/ATM.
1.30 pm: The van comes in front of Bank of India on KG Road and stops.
1.36 pm: Logi Cash officials step inside the bank while security guard leaves loaded gun in the vehicle and leaves for restroom leaving the cash van with the cash at the hand of driver Dominic Selvaraj.
1.38 pm: Dominic Selvaraj drives away the cash van along with Rs 1.37 cr.
1.42 pm: Security guard Chaman Lal and Logi Cash employees Shivakumar and Salim comes and search for the van.
1.45 pm: Shivakumar, an assistant manager at Logi Cash informs Prashanth Shetty, a senior manager who informs the police.
