Airport heist culprits identified

Mumbai: The crime branch, led by joint commissioner of police Rakesh Maria, on Wednesday made a breakthrough in the Rs 35-lakh daylight heist at Mumbai airport on May 25.
"We have got positive leads. We have identified all the four persons who came in a car, brandishing revolvers. We are sure that our sleuths will nab all of them soon,'' Maria told TOI.
According to Maria, all the four have previous criminal records. "We have specific details of all the accused. They are not associated either with the National Refinery or Pidilite, but they were certainly tipped off by a person who knew about the valuables packed in six boxes. We will get to know about the informant once we nab the accused,'' the crime branch chief said.
On Monday, four robbers entered the cargo section of the high-security Mumbai airport and made away with gold and silver coins, with a face value of Rs 35 lakh. The coins were part of a consignment of the Hyderabad-based Pidilite, being sent by the National Refinery.
A senior crime branch official said even as a national refinery employee was in the process of depositing the six boxes with coins at the cargo counter, two of the robbers - brandishing revolvers - entered the premises and made away with the boxes in a white Indigo car. They even injured an officer, who tried to raise an alarm but to no avail. "There were several workers on duty, but very few of them actually saw the incident,'' the official said.
In the meantime, security official of the AI S D Bhosale, who made an attempt to close the gate, was run over by the car. Later, he died of his injuries.
The incident raises doubts over the security measures taken by the management of the airport.
28/05/09 Prafulla Marpakwar/Times of India

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Categories: Airports May 2009, Cargo May 2009, Safety May 2009