A day after the police arrested two men for their role in the robbery of Rs 40 lakh from the employees of a BPCL petrol pump in Fatehgarh Sahib district of Punjab on May 29, the police Friday managed to nab the mastermind of the robbery, a former manager of the petrol pump located near the Bhatt Majra village. On May 29, a car carrying three employees of the pump, including a gunman, was followed by a white Hyundai i20 car as they exited the petrol pump. When the BPCL employees' vehicle attempted to pass through an underpass on the NH1, their path was blocked by four culprits who were already positioned there. The i20 car, which had been following them, blocked their way from behind. The robbers then fired three rounds at the car and looted around Rs 40 lakh. After the arrest of the two culprits, Gurpreet Singh and Harpreet Singh of Tarn Taran district, the police learnt that the mastermind of the heist is Vikramjeet Singh, a former manager of the petrol pump. Fatehgarh Sahib Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ravjot Kaur Grewal said Vikramjeet, a resident of Tangra village in Amritsar district, was held from Khara Kurali road in Mohali while he was traveling in his car. During interrogation, Vikramjeet revealed that he had kept the money at his Amritsar home. A team was sent to his home and Rs 33.73 lakh cash was recovered. “The investigation for further recovery and arrests is on,” Grewal said. Earlier, the SSP had received information about the possible hideout of the accused and had shared it with the Anti-Gangster Task Force (AGTF) and a joint team was formed to arrest them. After the police managed to arrest Gurpreet and Harpreet, they seized from their possession three 32 bore pistols, live ammunition and a car used in the robbery. It was also found out that the number plate on the car was fake. A fresh FIR was registered under Sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 473 (Making or possessing counterfeit seal, etc., with intent to commit forgery punishable otherwise) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act at Kharar Police Station.
