Armed men held bank staff hostage in Madhya Pradesh, loots gold, ₹35 lakh cash: Police

Five armed men looted gold, silver, and cash worth ₹35 lakh from a bank in Madhya Pradesh’s Singrauli on Friday afternoon after holding staff hostage for nearly 20 minutes, police said.Armed men enters Bank of Maharashtra in Singrauli, took employees hostage at gunpoint and escaped with gold, silver and ₹35 lakh cash. (Representative photo)Singrauli superintendent of police (SP) Manish Khatri said the incident occurred around 1 pm at Bank of Maharashtra. “Eyewitnesses reported that two armed men entered the premises and took the employees hostage at gunpoint. Shortly after, three more joined them, taking full control of the bank,” he said.“The robbers allegedly pointed guns at customers and staff, creating panic inside the branch. They demanded keys to the cash chests and details of reserves from the manager. When he hesitated, they assaulted him, striking his head with a gun butt before escaping with a chest of cash,” SP Khatri added.A customer, Ashish Pandey, said that no security guard was present during the incident and said that the robbers fired a shot inside the bank.Police teams reached after receiving information and sealed the bank. Statements from eyewitnesses and employees are being recorded, a police officer said.“All exit points of the city have been sealed, and CCTV footage from the bank and surrounding areas is being examined to trace the robbers’ escape route,” the officer added.