MUMBAI: The Bombay high court granted bail to accused Abhishekkumar Singh on Wednesday in an alleged case of armed bank heist of Rs 23 lakh and gold worth Rs 8.5 lakh in Karad in Maharashtra.
In March 2019, eight accused were booked and arrested for the alleged dacoity and by 2023, few were released, said lawyer for Singh, Piyush Toshnival arguing for his bail.
Justice M S Karnik who heard the bail plea was informed by prosecutor A A Palkar that four unknown persons barged into Shenoli Branch of Bank of Maharashtra and at gunpoint, threatened the complainant and the bank employees. “All of them were forced to gather in a storeroom which was locked and the accused persons, by threatening the employees with revolver, robbed cash from the cash counter as well as jewellery from the bank locker. The cash which came to be robbed was estimated at Rs 23,20,000 and the gold jewellery was valued at Rs 8,51,675. The First Information Report was registered against the unknown persons,” was the prosecution case, before the HC.
Palkar said Singh was identified in the ID parade as an accused and was seen on CCTV footage, besides over Rs 1 lakh was recovered from him.
A co-accused granted bail in September 2020 was not identified nor seen in the CCTV footage but was travelling on the same bus as Singh and Rs 5 lakh was recovered from that co-accused, the HC noted.
The HC said cash recovery from Singh has not been established by the prosecution to be the part of the currency notes which were stolen from the bank. It is one of the circumstances based on which the co-accused was released on bail and the same grounds must apply for Singh too said Justice Karnik, apart from the fact that he has been behind bars for over four and half years with no likelihood of trial concluding any time soon.
Singh is from Bihar, the HC said and directed that bail conditions would include a PR bond of Rs 50000, appearance before the IO at Karad Taluka police station once a fortnight every first and third Sunday for two hours till trial is on and he cannot leave Karad district without informing the court or the police.
In March 2019, eight accused were booked and arrested for the alleged dacoity and by 2023, few were released, said lawyer for Singh, Piyush Toshnival arguing for his bail.
Justice M S Karnik who heard the bail plea was informed by prosecutor A A Palkar that four unknown persons barged into Shenoli Branch of Bank of Maharashtra and at gunpoint, threatened the complainant and the bank employees. “All of them were forced to gather in a storeroom which was locked and the accused persons, by threatening the employees with revolver, robbed cash from the cash counter as well as jewellery from the bank locker. The cash which came to be robbed was estimated at Rs 23,20,000 and the gold jewellery was valued at Rs 8,51,675. The First Information Report was registered against the unknown persons,” was the prosecution case, before the HC.
Palkar said Singh was identified in the ID parade as an accused and was seen on CCTV footage, besides over Rs 1 lakh was recovered from him.
A co-accused granted bail in September 2020 was not identified nor seen in the CCTV footage but was travelling on the same bus as Singh and Rs 5 lakh was recovered from that co-accused, the HC noted.
The HC said cash recovery from Singh has not been established by the prosecution to be the part of the currency notes which were stolen from the bank. It is one of the circumstances based on which the co-accused was released on bail and the same grounds must apply for Singh too said Justice Karnik, apart from the fact that he has been behind bars for over four and half years with no likelihood of trial concluding any time soon.
Singh is from Bihar, the HC said and directed that bail conditions would include a PR bond of Rs 50000, appearance before the IO at Karad Taluka police station once a fortnight every first and third Sunday for two hours till trial is on and he cannot leave Karad district without informing the court or the police.
