Cash of Rs 12.92 lakh was looted by dacoits near the Kotoloposi bridge under the Jhumpura police station in Keonjhar district on Saturday. According to sources, 12 cattle traders of Razia were on their way to Bonai in Sundargarh district by a jeep to purchase cattle from the weekly market.
A dacoit gang which was following the traders by a Bolero jeep from Remuli suddenly blocked their way on the narrow Katoloposi. Four other dacoits immediately reached the spot by two bikes and pointed guns at the traders. After tying the traders’ jeep driver, the criminals robbed the traders at gunpoint before leaving the spot. “They were 15 of them, and since they were armed with guns, we were helpless,” a trader said. The Jhumpura police registered a case and initiated an inquiry into the incident.