By IANS,
Ranchi : In the biggest heist of its kind in Jharkhand, a gang of over a dozen men looted Rs.50 million from a bank van Wednesday afternoon, abducted two guards and shot one of the policemen chasing them.
Fourteen robbers hijacked the armoured van of ICICI Bank near Salgidih in Tamar block, around 70 km from here, as it was coming from Jamshedpur to Ranchi on its daily run to stock the ATMs in the state capital.
They drove the van to a secluded spot, emptied it of Rs.50 million inside, packed the money in bags and made their way to a nearby forest, kidnapping two of the van guards as well.
On being informed, a police team chased the robbers into the forest, where a gunfight started, and was going on when reports last came in, senior police officials said here. One constable was injured.
This is the largest-ever heist in Jharkhand. Last year, some people had robbed around Rs.17.5 million from the Ranchi branch of the Syndicate Bank, but they were killed within five hours of the incident and the money recovered.