Ludhiana ATM Robbery: Two Held After Escaping to Lucknow Following Theft

Jasleen Kaur

3 months ago

2Arrested in Ludhiana ATM Robbery Case After Fleeing to Lucknow

Ludhiana: The police have arrested two individuals in connection with a robbery at a Bank of Baroda ATM in Ludhiana. The accused targeted the ATM located near Pratap Chowk during the intervening night of June 12 and 13. Before the incident, they conducted a recce of the ATM during the day and executed the crime at night.

Police investigation revealed that both accused are drug addicts. They stole approximately ₹17.98 lakh by opening the ATM lock without using a gas cutter or any specialized tools. Following the incident, both fled to Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, by train.

ATM robbery accused held in Lucknow raid

Police from Division No. 6 conducted a raid and arrested both accused in Lucknow. A sum of ₹13.75 lakh was also recovered from their possession. The police will produce the accused in court to seek remand for further interrogation.

Providing details, DCP Jaskiranjit Singh Teja stated that the two accused are aged 24 and 19. Both were currently residing in Ludhiana. The first accused has been identified as Sudhanshu Mahajan, a native of village Alowal (Police Station Alowal, District Kapurthala). He was currently living in a rented house at House No. 12011, Street No. 3, near Garhwali Mandir, SAS Nagar, Dholewal.

The second accused has been identified as Wasim Khan, alias Motu (19), a native of village Benipur Baldev (Police Station Gauriganj, District Amethi, Uttar Pradesh). He was currently living in a rented house at House No. 12172, Street No. 21, Ram Nagar, Dholewal (Police Station Division No. 6, Ludhiana).

Financial distress cited as motive.

According to the police, the accused Wasim needed to fund his sister’s wedding, while the accused Sudhanshu Mahajan wanted to buy a house; these were the reasons they carried out the robbery. After stealing the money, the two accused divided the cash between themselves. They then reached Lucknow via the Ludhiana railway station.

For a few days, the miscreants lived it up in Lucknow using the money, but the police eventually located and apprehended them. During interrogation, the accused, Sudanshu Mahajan, revealed that during the summer months, he would often sleep inside the ATM kiosk at Pratap Chowk, Ludhiana, at night. He had been unable to find daily wage work for the past few days, which had severely strained his financial situation. The police had previously registered a formal complaint (‘kalandra’) against Sudanshu.