Investigations into the Rs 1.95 crore ATM van heist in Vile Parle earlier this month have revealed that Sadre Alam Khan (20), the security guard who allegedly played a key role in the crime, has four cases of robbery and dacoity registered against him with various police stations in Mumbai and Thane. Khan, despite a having a criminal record was able to secure employment as a security guard. The crime branch has now issued a summon to the owner of the security agency. On January 16, the van was ferrying the cash to be filled in various ATMs in the city’s western suburb. Sadre Alam was o n board the vehicle along with the driver, Tariq Khan (30) and two other guards. When they stopped for a tea break in Worli, Alam allegedly spiked the two guards’ tea and they lost consciousness. Meanwhile, his three accomplices were lying in wait at the Milan Subway in Khar and intercepted the van as soon as it reached the spot, after which the quartet robbed the cash and fled the scene. Tariq was found to have been involved in the offense and was arrested along with two others on January 18, while Sadre Alam and the other three accomplices were arrested from Patiala last week by the Crime Branch Unit VIII. “Sadre Alam’s interrogation revealed that he is a repeat offender with a history of robbery and dacoity. He has cases registered against him with the Padgha, Kalyan, Nagpada and JJ Marg police stations, and was still working as a guard with a Mumbai based agency for the past one-and-a-half month. We have summoned to the owner of the agency, and have asked him to appear before us. He has also been instructed to bring a record of all his employees so that we can find out how many of his employees have been subjected to a background check before being employed. After completing inquiries, we will decide on what action to take against him,” said a Crime Branch officer. Inquiries have also revealed that Tariq, who was working as a driver, was also not checked for criminal antecedents by the company that provides vans to ferry cash. Crime branch officers are currently checking his background. A senior crime branch officer added, “A report of Unit VIII’s investigations will also be sent to the office of the Joint Commissioner of Police (Administration), who is the licensing authority for security agencies. We will also send a recommendation, listing necessary actions against the agency along with the investigation report.” Meanwhile, the crime branch on Tuesday recovered Rs 1.54 crore in cash that the accused had hidden from various places in Mumbai. “The accused had divided the cash and given it to their friends for ‘safekeeping’, telling them that they needed to go to their native place urgently and requesting them to keep their money in a safe place till they came back. We are investigating whether they knew if the money was robbed from an ATM van,” said an officer. The arrested accused have been remanded to the crime branch’s custody till February 2, said officials.
