Bhubaneswar: In a swift operation, Talcher police in Angul district arrested four men from Maharashtra on Thursday for allegedly staging a fake Income Tax raid to rob a gold refinery the previous evening. The police recovered jewellery worth nearly Rs 50 lakh within 12 hours of the crime. Two of the accused sustained bullet injuries in an encounter with police before being taken into custody.
Accused Identified
The accused were identified as Rajesh Sahaji Madne (41), Deba Prabhakar Lokhande (40), Sachin Gajge (39), and Prakash Madne (25). They were arrested from Angul district.
How the Robbery Was Executed
Police said the gang posed as Income Tax officials to gain entry into the gold refinery at Hatatota under Talcher police station limits on Wednesday evening. Under the guise of conducting an inspection, they won the confidence of the staff before threatening them at gunpoint. The robbers looted gold and silver ornaments and abducted an employee, who was later released unharmed near Kaltax Chowk in Angul.
Police Operation
“We formed five special teams and launched a coordinated operation involving CCTV analysis, technical surveillance, intelligence gathering, vehicle tracking, and inter-district blockades. The accused were traced moving towards Sambalpur via NH-55,” said Angul SP Rahul Jain. Their getaway car was intercepted near Chuliapur jungle under Handapa police station limits in Angul. On spotting the police, the gang abandoned the vehicle and fled into the forest. “The accused opened fire on our personnel, who resorted to controlled retaliatory firing. Two of them — Sachin and Prakash — sustained bullet injuries in their legs and were treated before arrest,” Jain added.
Inside Information
Police later revealed that Prakash had worked at the refinery about three years ago and used his knowledge of the premises to plan the heist.
