In a major daylight heist, armed robbers looted gold worth more than Rs 14.8 crore and Rs 5.7 lakh in cash from a bank in the Khitola area, about 50 km from Jabalpur, this morning. The robbery took place around 11 am at the Isaf Small Finance Bank branch, with suspects threatening staff at gunpoint before fleeing within minutes.
According to the police, the robbers -- believed to be six in number -- arrived on three motorcycles. CCTV footage shows at least four of them entering the bank one by one, wearing helmets to conceal their faces.
They allegedly observed the staff for a while before drawing pistols and threatening to shoot. The assailants forced employees to hand over locker keys and quickly loaded 14.8 kg of gold and cash into bags.
The bank staff said there were six employees, including the manager, inside at the time of the robbery. The branch had no security guard on duty at the time, reportedly because of recent changes in working hours for the festive season.
Suryakant Sharma, a senior officer of the local police, confirmed that the robbers fled with 14,875 grams of gold and Rs 5.7 lakh in cash.
"The incident took place in the jurisdiction of Khitauli police station. We have registered a First Information Report, deployed the Crime Branch, and collected CCTV footage. Clues have been found, and we are confident of cracking the case soon," he said.
The police have sealed the district borders and alerted neighbouring districts, including Katni, Mandla, and Dindori. Multiple teams are scanning CCTV cameras installed in the bank and surrounding areas to track the suspects' route.
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