Ex-DSPs arrested for ₹6 lakh Jalandhar bank loot

The Jalandhar Commissionerate Police arrested one of the two men involved ₹6-lakh robbery at the Punjab National Bank branch on Mithapur Road on Monday.

The suspect, Simranjit Singh (49), is the son of a former Punjab Police Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP).

The robbery took place on Monday around 14:30 when two masked men entered the bank posing as customers. They held a female cashier at gunpoint and fled with the cash on a scooter. The incident was caught on CCTV cameras.

Police Commissioner Dhanpreet Kaur Randhawa said investigation teams used technical evidence and human intelligence to track down and arrest Simranjit on Monday evening, just hours after the crime. The police recovered ₹3 lakh from the stolen money and the weapon used during the robbery.

According to the police, Simranjit lives near the bank and was aware that the branch did not have a security guard. He is believed to be a drug addict who committed the crime to finance his addiction.

Investigators said the accused was married and had two children. “He doesn’t have any job or business. He was trying to make easy money through crime and roped in his friend to carry out the bank robbery,” said a police officer.

Simranjit also has a criminal record with fraud and drug-related cases previously registered against him in Batala and Mohali.

He has now been booked under section 309 (4) (robbery) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and relevant sections of the Arms Act.

While his accomplice was identified, police withheld his name pending arrest.