Nagpur: On Tuesday night, a shocking incident occurred in the Itwari wholesale market area of the city, where armed men targeted and robbed two employees of a transport firm, making off with a staggering Rs 1.20 crore. The victims were Pradeep Saraswat and Pralhad Swami, who were entrusted with transporting the cash belonging to Jirambhai Patel, a transporter. The robbery took place within the jurisdiction of Lakadganj Police Station.
At around 8:30 pm, after collecting the cash from the office in Itwari, the employees placed the money in a bag on their two-wheeler for transportation to Bhutada Chambers. While passing through Bardana Lane, they were suddenly confronted by two armed robbers who forced them to stop. The culprits brandished sharp weapons, threatening harm to the employees and demanded the bag containing the money. Fearing for their safety, Pradeep and Pralhad complied with the robbers’ demands and retreated from the scene. Taking advantage of the opportunity, the robbers then stole the two-wheeler and escaped. The robbery took place near Arvind Bank.
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15 May 2025
The employees immediately informed their superiors about the incident, prompting the police to take action. The Lakadganj police, under the leadership of Joint Commissioner of Police Aswati Dorje and Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Zone III Gaurav Bhamre, quickly arrived at the scene to investigate the matter.
In response to the robbery, the city police have increased security measures in the Itwari area. They have set up nakabandi (roadblocks) in the vicinity and are diligently searching for any leads that could help identify the culprits. As part of their investigation, the police are also reviewing CCTV footage from the area. Given the substantial amount of money involved, they are exploring the possibility that the cash may be linked to illegal hawala trading.
Initial information from company officials indicated that the cash had been collected over several days and was being taken to Bhutada Chambers for safekeeping. The police suspect that someone very close to the situation might have tipped off the robbers about the movement of such a large amount of cash. Though moving significant sums of money in the wholesale market area is not common, it appears that it was done discreetly. The police are determined to establish how the robbers gained knowledge of the cash movement and targeted the two employees at a relatively deserted location.
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