A motorcycle-borne pair allegedly robbed two ATM cash-handling employees of ₹21.40 lakh in broad daylight in Bokaro’s Marafari police station area on Saturday, prompting police to alert patrol teams, checkposts and inter-state borders across the region.
The robbery took place at about 2.10 pm between Bokaro Nathdham Shiv Temple and the BSL Mansa Singh Gate. According to the report, the employees of Hitachi’s ATM cash-management operation had withdrawn the money from Axis Bank’s branch at Naya More in the City police station area. The cash was being transported for deposit into two ATMs located in Kurmidih and Balidih.
The two employees were travelling by motorcycle towards Kurmidih through the Duggal Gate route when two men on another motorcycle approached them from behind near the Bokaro Nathdham temple. The assailants allegedly pushed the employees off the motorcycle, took the briefcase containing the cash and fled.
The employees, identified as Vijay Kumar and his associate, informed the police after the incident. Headquarters Deputy Superintendent of Police Pawan Kumar and Marafari Inspector Sanjay Kumar reached the spot and questioned them about the robbery. Police subsequently alerted all police stations, patrol teams, checkposts and inter-state borders, and began searches for the suspects.
The incident has also brought attention to the security arrangements used while transporting large amounts of cash for ATM replenishment. Kumar told the publication that moving cash to ATMs was part of his regular work and that employees generally carried around ₹4 lakh to ₹5 lakh for replenishment on ordinary days. The amount transported on this occasion was substantially higher because banks were expected to remain closed for three days during Durga Puja, according to the report.
The cash was intended for two machines, making the movement part of the routine operational chain that keeps ATMs supplied outside bank branches. The reported robbery occurred while the money was being taken from the bank to those machines, rather than at an ATM location itself.
Police are examining the circumstances under which the cash was transported, including the security arrangements followed by the employees. The investigation remains focused on identifying and tracing the two motorcycle-borne suspects. Authorities have not disclosed whether any arrests or recoveries have been made. The next steps include continued searches across the alerted jurisdictions and further questioning of the employees involved.
