The Brahmapur police on Sunday claimed to have cracked the hijack and loot case of an ATM cash van at gunpoint in Aska of Ganjam district on August 18.
Brahmapur SP Pinak Mishra said the driver of the hijacked ATM cash loading van was in fact the mastermind behind the loot of Rs 24 lakh from the vehicle.
The driver of the van along with his two aides hatched the conspiracy for the loot. They orchestrated the loot and the driver intentionally drugged himself to float a story about him being kidnapped, Mishra said. “We came to know about the conspiracy following an interrogation of the driver and his two associates,” he added. Cash of Rs 20.90 lakh cash was recovered from near the residence of the two accused at Sarangagada in Phulbani district where they had buried the money. A motorcycle used by the accused, as many as four mobile phones and a divine slip liquid have also been seized from the possession of the accused., he said.
Further questioning of the accused and investigation into the incident was underway. Police are tracking the GPS location and CCTV footage of the vehicle. According to reports, the van belonging to cash logistics firm AGS Transact Technologies Ltd was allegedly hijacked when it was on its way to load cash in ATMs.
The driver who was rescued in an unconscious state after the vehicle was traced by the Golanthara police had said that some miscreants had looted the cash vehicle after drugging him.