Three armed men executed a lightning-fast heist at the ESAF Small Finance Bank in Madhya Pradesh’s Khitola village on Monday morning, making off with gold and cash estimated to be worth over Rs 10 crore in less than eight minutes, police said.
The robbery unfolded at exactly 9 am as the bank opened for business in the Sihora area, 45 kilometres from Jabalpur district headquarters. Bank employees had barely begun their daily routines when the motorcycle-borne trio struck with calculated precision, officers said.
The suspects entered the premises one by one through an unguarded entrance, immediately brandishing country-made pistols at six staff members. “The robbers threatened that if anyone made noise or tried to call the police, they would shoot them,” said a senior police officer.
The manager activated the alarm system, but complied with demands to access the bank’s gold storage. The robbers collected an estimated 10-15 kilogrammes of pledged gold and between Rs 5-6 lakh in cash before fleeing at 9.08 am, police said.
The absence of security personnel proved to be a major factor, officers said.
Additional SP Suryakant Sharma explained the facility’s vulnerabilities: “There was no security guard at the bank. The entry gate was left open, and there were no channel gates. When they entered the bank, there was no one to stop them.”
Superintendent of Police Sampat Upadhyay rushed to the scene with fingerprint experts and investigative teams. CCTV footage from the bank and surrounding areas is being analysed.
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Initial estimates of stolen gold range from 10 to 15 kg, with total losses potentially reaching Rs 14 crore.
The three suspects, described as young men wearing helmets and face coverings, remain at large. Dog squads have been deployed while investigators examine whether the gang possessed inside knowledge of the bank’s security gaps, police said.
