SSP Kuldeep Singh Chahal with other officers at police headquarters, Mohali, Sunday. (Photo: Jasbir Malhi)

The district police on Sunday solved the armed robbery which had taken place at Punjab National Bank’s all-women branch in Phase 3-A on June 17. The police arrested three persons and recovered Rs 3.01 lakh and the weapons used in the crime.

Those arrested were identified as Sandeep Khurmi alias Sunny, Sonu and Ravi Kothari. The police recovered a Skoda car, an air pistol and a knife used in the crime.

Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kuldeep Singh Chahal said that the accused, Sonu and Sandeep, were lodged in Ambala jail in different cases and in March they were released on bail due to COVID-19. He added that the accused were drug addicts and they did not have money.

“They planned robbery and started doing a recce of different banks. They zeroed in on PNB’s branch after noticing that no security guard was present inside the bank,” the SSP added.

The SSP said that on June 17, Sandeep and Sonu went inside the bank carrying an air pistol and a knife while Ravi Kothari waited outside in the car.

“After carrying out the robbery, the accused had fled in their car. They took away Rs 4.80 lakh,” the SSP added.

The SSP said that all the accused have criminal past and are wanted in a number of snatching, attempt to murder and criminal intimidation cases in the Tricity. The SSP added that Sandeep Khurmi was booked in 20 cases, including one murder case, two cases of assaulting public servants, escaping from police custody, abetment to suicide and theft. Sonu was booked in three cases of theft, snatching in Pankchkula and a robbery case in Chandigarh while accused Ravi Kothari was booked in a snatching and Arms Act case in Chandigarh and a snatching case in Panchkula.

After the robbery on June 17, the police team, led by PCR in-charge ASI Ajay Pathak, had rounded up Sandeep from his house in Sector 52, Chandigarh, for questioning.