It took the city sleuths barely three days to crack down on the four men who had robbed Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) employees of Rs 3.57 lakh at gun-point last Saturday. The robbers were arrested and a major part of the booty was recovered.

The four men, armed and on two motorcycles, had accosted the two LIC employees while they were on their way to a local bank to deposit the cash. The money was snatched at gun-point on Hemchandra Naskar Road, in Beleghata.

Deputy commissioner of police (headquarters) H.P. Singh identified the four arrested men as Mohammad Nadeem, Mohammad Naushad, Abdul Hamid and Sheikh Rahul, all criminals operating in the Tiljala-Beniapukur belt.

“The quartet told us that before carrying out the robbery, they had deputed two men, Kartik and Dilip, for tips on the movement of the LIC employees and cash. Kartik and Dilip supplied meals to the LIC office. The robbers struck on Saturday at an appointed hour — the time the employees usually set out for the bank,” Singh added.

While Nadeem and Naushad were rounded up from Darga Road, in Tiljala, Hamid and Rahul were arrested from a house on Ripon Street. “They had bought themselves many household goods and electronic items with the money, but we recovered a balance of Rs 1.40 lakh from them,” said an officer of Beleghata police station.

“The goods they had bought have also been seized, along with the two motorcycles they had used to carry out the crime. Dilip and Kartik are absconding. We hope to nab them soon,” said deputy commissioner Singh.

Burglary foiled

Late on Monday evening, a housewife outwitted her former domestic helps who had come to burgle her apartment.

The two armed men barged into Seema Gupta’s residence at Marcus Square, in the Jorasanko police station area.

“She was caught unawares and overpowered by the two, but when they tried to strangle her, she fought back and managed to shake them off,” explained Timir Bhattacharya, officer-in-charge of Jorasanko police station.

Gupta raised an alarm as soon as she was free and held on to Ashok Nair, alias Bimal. “Soon, next-door neighbours who had heard her shout rushed in and caught him. Bimal’s associate, Mukesh, who had also served the Guptas for a while, fled. Two medium-sized crow-bars, used to force open locks and steel almirahs, and four daggers were recovered from the spot of the attempted burglary,” Bhattacharya added.

According to police sources, Bimal’s interrogation has thrown up Mukesh’s address and they hope to round him up soon. “The former servants knew where the Guptas kept their valuables and had also come to know that the family had recently withdrawn cash and jewellery for a get-together. The duo thought it was the best time to strike,” the officer said.