Techie gets robbed while taking a nap on highway

Praveen Kumar | NT

Bengaluru, Nov.11

Stopping his SUV to the roadside to take a short nap proved costly for a 40-year-old software engineer, as he was robbed by six dacoits on the busy Nelamangala-Kunigal main road.

While returning from to the city from his trip to Dharmasthala and Adhichunchanagiri Hills, and after crossing the Lanco Toll plaza on the Nelamangala-Kunigal Road, Amith Shetty, a resident of AECS Layout in Singasandra, decided to sleep in his SUV at around 11.45 pm.

“The exact location of the robbery is two kilometres after the Lanco Toll plaza. He had even half opened the driver’s side window and was sleeping. Around 2.45 am, two of the six dacoits who first came near the SUV woke up the victim asking him not to park the vehicle as it was not safe. Saying ‘sorry’ when he was about to start the vehicle, one of the two accused threatened Shetty at knife point and pulled him out,” said an officer based on the statements of the victim in his police complaint.

Later two other gang members came to the spot on a bike. All the four forced the victim to remove his gold chain, two gold rings, and a high-end mobile phone. They then took the purse from him and took Rs 9,500 in cash. The purse also contained debit/credit cards.

“Three of the accused checked the entire vehicle to see if there were any other valuables inside. They took a laptop. Later two more associates joined them and all the six dacoits escaped on two bikes towards Nelamangala direction. Both the bikes did not have registration number plates,” the officer said.

The cost of the stolen valuables is estimated to be over Rs 3 lakh. The accused have not harmed the victim and nor did they take away his vehicle.

“After finding help from passersby, the victim reached the police and the complaint was filed at around 5 am. It appears that the accused are part of a professional gang who target such lone persons inside the four-wheelers. We are checking the footage of the CCTVs in the vicinity to get more details of the gang. The accused are yet to be arrested,” the officer added.

A case of dacoity under section 395 of the Indian Penal Code has been registered by the jurisdictional police.