Debt-ridden techie arrested for bank heist

Team Udayavani, Jan 22, 2022, 8:22 PM IST

Bengaluru: Desperate to come out of a debt trap of around Rs 35 lakh due to online trading, a 28-year-old techie allegedly robbed a bank of Rs 85.38 lakh at knife-point but was eventually caught, police said on Saturday.

According to police, Dhiraj S, a mechanical engineer from Basaveshwar Nagar in the city, had allegedly stormed into the bank just when the staff were shuttering the SBI branch at BTM Layout under the jurisdiction of Madivala police station on January 14 evening.

With his face masked, Dhiraj held a bank staffer by brandishing a knife at him asking other employees to open the premises. The shaken officials followed his instructions, police added.

The accused then took them to the strong room of the bank where he got Rs 3.77 lakh cash and 1.8 kg gold jewels loaded in his bag, the police said, adding that he escaped with the booty.

Following a complaint, the police formed various teams and worked on various intelligence inputs. Police was finally able to crack the case and caught him on January 18 evening.

Upon interrogation, Dhiraj revealed that he worked in a software company with a monthly salary of Rs 30,000. He had lost a huge sum in an online trading platform called Olymp Trade. To overcome the loss, he had borrowed about Rs 35 lakh, police said.

As the money lenders started pestering him, he planned the bank heist. He learnt the basics of bank robbery using some YouTube channels.

Dhiraj allegedly surveyed many banks not only in Bengaluru but also in Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh and finally zeroed in on the SBI branch at BTM Layout.