In a major bank robbery, Rs. 27 lakh in cash was found stolen from the Indian Overseas Bank branch at Thukalasserry, near Thiruvalla, on Monday morning.
According to the police, the bank authorities reported the theft of new currency worth Rs. 16 lakh and old currency worth Rs. 11 lakh from two lockers at the bank.
Two iron safes were found broke open using cutters. CCTV cameras and the computer hard disks were also found stolen, the police said.
However, a third locker at the bank that had gold and other valuables was found intact. The police suspect that the heist might have taken place on Saturday night as a youth who was returning from a nearby church after the Christmas service saw two persons wearing masks near the bank. The robbers might have entered the bank breaking the iron bars of a window, the police said.
Superintendent of Police S. Harishankar and B. Chandrashekharan Nair, Deputy Superintendent of Police, inspected the site.