In a stunning burglary, some unidentified gangsters looted money and valuables worth more than Rs 1 crore from 27 lockers, after digging a 25-feet-long tunnel and breaking into Bank of Baroda's branch at Juinagar in the adjoining Navi Mumbai during the weekend.
The burglary came to light, when the bank's branch — located in sector 11 of Navi Mumbai — opened on Monday morning. The break-in is believed to have taken place either on Saturday night or Sunday night
Police said that of the 237 lockers, the burglars broke open 27 and decamped with cash and ornaments kept in them.
The investigations have revealed that the burglars entered the bank using a 25-long tunnel that they had dug from an adjoining shop.
Giving details of the shocking burglary, Navi Mumbai Police Commissioner Hemant Nagrale said: "The thieves had rented out the adjoining shop since May, 2017. The culprits dug an underground tunnel of 25 feet from that shop to the locker room of Bank of Baroda… We are trying to ascertain the exact amount of the looted cash and valuables".
However, another senior police official pegged the value of looted cash and ornaments at over Rs 1 crore.
Having registered a case of burglary, the investigators have launched a manhunt for the burglars.
"We have a reason to believe that the group of burglars had carried out reconnaissance of the bank branch on several times. They must have known the architecture of the bank and the locker room well. Suffice to say, it is a meticulously planned and executed burglary," the police officer said.