Two more sent to 14-day judicial custody in Tiruvannamalai ATM heist case

‘Gujarat’ P. Basha and P. Afsar Hussian were arrested from a hideout in KGF (Kolar)

Judicial Magistrate-1 K. Kaviarasan at the Combined Court complex in Tiruvannamalai, on Tuesday, sent the two more suspects, who were reportedly involved in the ATM robberies here to 14 days’ judicial custody upto March 7.

The police said that ‘Gujarat’ P. Basha, 43, and his associate, P. Afsar Hussian, 26, were arrested from the hideout in KGF (Kolar) in Karnataka by a special team of the Tamil Nadu police in the early hours of Tuesday.

The two suspects reached Tiruvannamalai town around 1 p.m. After completing formalities, the suspects were taken to Tiruvannamalai town police station where M.S. Muthusamy, DIG (Vellore range), conducted an inquiry with them. The duo were taken to the Government Medical College Hospital in the town for medical tests. “The two aides have helped the gang by providing accomodation and money. The robbed money will be completely recovered soon,” said K. Karthikeyan, SP, Tiruvannamalai.  

At 6.30 p.m, the two suspects were produced before the Judicial Magistrate-1. They were taken to Central Prison in Vellore, around 95 km from Tiruvannamalai and lodged in the prison.

On February 17, two key suspects, including the mastermind behind the robbery Mohammed Arif, 35, and his friend and accomplice, Azad, 37, were arrested in Nuh district of Haryana and were brought to Chennai by flight before they were lodged at the Central Prison in Vellore a day later.

The police said that the investigation was still on, as other suspects in Gujarat were being interrogated. The interrogation is mainly done to recover remaining cash that was stolen by the gang. Of the total stolen cash of ₹79.90 lakh, the police have recovered only ₹3 lakh from the duo who were arrested in Haryana.   Initial inquiry revealed that the gang stayed in a hotel in KGF where they planned the entire heist. From the hotel, they visited Tiruvannamalai and other neighbouring areas and monitored them for weeks before they executed it. The gang had cut open the ATMs with a gas-welding machine and looted the cash. After the robbery, the suspects stayed in the hideout at KGF (Kolar) for a few days before boarding a flight from Bengaluru airport.