The Rachakonda Police have successfully arrested a five-member gang involved in the theft of Rs 29.69 lakh from an SBI ATM in Ravirala village, located on the outskirts of Hyderabad. The accused individuals have been identified as Rahul (25), Musthakeem Khan (28), Waheed Khan (18), Shakeel Khan (24), and Mohammed Sarfaraz (28), all originally from Rajasthan.
According to Rachakonda Police Commissioner G. Sudheer Babu, the gang had carried out the heist on March 2, stealing a significant sum in just a few minutes. The investigation revealed that the criminals had arrived in Hyderabad by flight from Delhi to execute their crime. They executed the robbery in an astonishingly brief time frame of just three minutes, and within six minutes, they had already fled the scene.
This group, mostly targeting SBI and HDFC ATMs, has a history of similar crimes in various locations such as Kushaiguda, BDL Banur, and Odisha. Rahul, who hails from Hyderabad, is considered the key mastermind of the operation.
The gang, originally from Mewat district (Haryana), used gas cutters to break into the ATM machines, sprayed paint to obscure CCTV cameras, and wore masks to avoid identification. Their modus operandi has included targeting ATMs across multiple states, particularly along the Delhi-Rajasthan-UP borders, and fleeing back to their native places after committing thefts.
In total, the group has been linked to other robberies, including incidents on the Outer Ring Road. The Adibatla Police worked diligently on the case for 22 days before making the breakthrough and apprehending the suspects.
