Durgapur, April 3: Three motorcycle-borne youths today shot three times at a security guard escorting a van carrying cash to feed an ICICI Bank ATM in Burdwan’s Asansol and escaped with Rs 34 lakh.

Eyewitnesses said the youths intercepted three employees of a private cash handling and managing agency and the security guard after they got off the van and were walking towards the ATM, barely 100 metres from the police lines in the town.

The cash had been brought in the bullet-resistant van from the Asansol branch of the ICICI Bank.

“All of them (the robbers) were in their mid-20s. They pointed revolvers at us,” said Min Bahadur Thapa, an employee of the agency.

“I was carrying the suitcase to the counter with security guard Saroj Roy following me. When Roy tried to fire at them, they shot at him thrice. Then they snatched the suitcase from me and fled.”

The police said Roy, 35, had suffered two bullet injuries, one in the abdomen and the other in the hip. He was admitted to hospital where his condition was stated to be critical. The bullets are yet to be removed.

Kuran Tantubai, 30, an eyewitness, said the youths rode off towards Burnpur after the robbery.

“A few local people and I chased them but they escaped,” he added.

The police, who reached the spot an hour after the incident, were gheraoed by local people.

The mob blocked the Asansol-Burnpur road for over an hour, accusing the police of inaction.

“Today’s robbery took place close to the Asansol police lines and in daylight. But there were no policemen around to arrest the gang,” said Bhaskar Roy, 38, who runs a cyber cafe in the area.

The deputy superintendent of police, Asansol, Debarshi Dutta, said the gang was yet to be identified.

“We have started conducting raids to nab the criminals,” he said.