karnataka police have successfully apprehended a six-member gang involved in the theft of 17.7 kg of gold from the State Bank of India (SBI) Nyamati branch in Davangere on October 28, 2024.
The stolen gold was recovered from a well in Usalampatti town in Tamil Nadu, officials confirmed. The accused include Vijaykumar (30), his brother Ajaykumar (28), Paramananda (30), Abhisheka (23), Chandru (23), and Manjunath (32). Vijaykumar and Ajaykumar are brothers, while Paramananda is their brother-in-law. The first three hail from Tamil Nadu, while the others are local residents of Nyamati.
During the investigation, police also uncovered another gang of robbers from Kakrala in Budaun, Uttar Pradesh, who had been executing multiple bank heists across southern India. The Kakrala gang, consisting of Guddu Kalia, Aslam, Hazarath Ali, Kamruddin, and Babu Sahan, had been involved in property crimes in Karnataka for the past decade, including major gold thefts from Karnataka Grameen Bank branches in Hosahalli and Bevuru.
Authorities noted that the Kakrala gang’s method of operation was similar to the Nyamati heist—targeting banks in isolated areas, entering through windows, using gas cutters, stealing DVRs, and avoiding mobile phone use.
From November 2024 to February 2025, multi-state operations across Gujarat, Rajasthan, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh enabled police to capture the offenders. Interrogations of the arrested suspects led to the discovery of several other property offences in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
This marks the first arrest of these offenders by Karnataka Police, highlighting a significant breakthrough in tackling organized bank robberies in the region.
