Year’s first: Bank robbers get away with Rs1.3m

The nine culprits also took away the surveillance system.

KARACHI: The first bank robbery of this year occurred on Friday when a gang of robbers looted almost Rs1.3 million from a branch of Allied Bank Limited in Korangi.

At around 11:30am, a group of armed robbers entered the bank, located in K-Area in Korangi Industrial Area within the limits of Awami Colony police station.

After entering the bank, the robbers held staff, customers and a security guard hostage and started looting the cash. The robbers took away nearly Rs1.3 million from the cash counter before fleeing. They also took with them the bank's surveillance system so as to dent police investigation into the incident.

Of the nine robbers clad in shalwar kameez and trousers, one stayed outside the premises to stand guard while the rest entered the bank. They also snatched the security guard's shotgun and later dumped it outside while fleeing, according to witnesses.

Police officials have taken the security guard, identified as Iqbal, and two bank employees into custody on suspicion of being involved. Awami Colony SHO Khalid Abbasi said usually two security guards are on duty at the bank on a daily basis but only one was on duty on Friday. He failed to offer any sort of resistance to the robbers, Abbasi added.

Last year, a total of 12 bank robberies occurred in the metropolis in which robbers managed to loot millions of rupees. Law-enforcers only managed to trace a handful of culprits last year.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 9^th, 2016.