Bhubaneswar: The Commissionerate Police, Bhubaneswar on Friday cracked the loot of Rs 11 lakh cash by bike-borne miscreants near Pitapali over-bye-pass bridge on March 30 with the arrest of four persons.
The accused persons have been identified as Somanath Jena alias Soma (31) of Khordha, Dipti Ranjan Baliarsingh alias Deepak (31) of Khordha, Asish Kumar Das (25) of Nayagarh and Smrutiranjan Sethi alias Bablu (25) of Khordha, police said.
Police have seized Rs 9.69 lakh cash, three motorcycles, one scooter and three mobile phones from their possession.
According to the police, one Udaya Bhanu Biswal of Shastrinagar along with Lingaraj Nayak, Dinesh Kumar Sahoo, Santosh Behera Akshaya Biswal and Ardhendu Mohanty had formed a coin-exchange syndicate.
Biswal after collecting high-denomination currency notes from co-partners had on March 30 deputed Sambhunath Sahoo and Dharmendra Reddy with the collected amount of Rs 11 lakh of high denomination notes to SBI Chhatrapur for exchange of these big notes into small denomination currency notes.
After receiving the small denomination currency notes and coins amounting to Rs 11 lakh in two handbags Sahoo and Reddy on their return journey on a scooter were waylaid by four known persons on three two-wheelers near Pitapali over-bye-pass bridge at 5.30 PM who looted the money bags, their mobile phones and the scooter by threatening them and fled.