Two armed robbers, who entered a Ballygunge flat on Wednesday morning pretending to be masseurs, were caught before they could escape with their loot.

The men tied up 62-year-old flat-owner Harish Chandra Poddar and his eight-year-old grandson and took out 101 “antique” silver coins and other silver ornaments from an almirah.

As soon as they left the flat, Poddar managed to remove the gag and raised an alarm. The security guard of the Ballygunge Park Road highrise chased and caught the duo.

One of the robbers had introduced himself to Poddar as Shibu Kamath, a masseur from Madhubani, in Bihar.

He had visited the fifth-floor flat a few times to massage Poddar.

Around 6am on Wednesday, when Poddar’s wife and daughter had gone out for a walk, Kamath entered the flat with another youth, whom he introduced as his friend and colleague Rajkumar Sahani, said deputy commissioner (detective department) Jawed Shamim.

According to Poddar, the duo overpowered him and took him to a bedroom. When he tried to resist them, Sahani took out a knife and threatened him. Poddar sustained some cuts in the scuffle that ensued.

“The duo tore a bedsheet to tie the hands and legs of Poddar and his grandson,” said an officer of Karaya police station. “They completed the operation neatly, but Poddar managed to free himself before the two had left the building. He ran to the balcony and started shouting for help. Security guard Netai Samanta chased the duo down the road and caught them. The entire loot was recovered,” added the officer.