Palanpur: Banaskantha police have cracked the Rs 30 lakh silver heist near Tetoda village on the Deesa–Dhanera highway and arrested four persons, while the alleged mastermind, a former employee of bullion trading firm, is absconding.Police said the robbery was allegedly planned by Bharat Rabari, a former employee of an Ahmedabad-based firm, who had quit the job about 15 days earlier.The robbery took place on April 21 when employees of the firm were transporting 13 kg of silver in a car. Four men who came in another car intercepted the vehicle, forced the occupants to stop, snatched the bullion and fled.The arrested accused are Sakarsinh Vaghela, Vipulsinh Vaghela, Liluba Vaghela and Vikramsinh Chauhan. Another accused Deva Rabari, is also on the run. The police also recovered looted silver ornaments worth Rs 25 lakh from them.Banaskantha SP Prashant Sumbe said, “Investigations revealed that Rabari had tipped off and coordinated with the accused to execute the robbery. He was well-versed with the logistics of the company’s vehicles.”This route is often used to transport jewellery and precious metals between Rajasthan and Gujarat.“Soon after the robbery, teams from Palanpur and Deesa police divisions raided several locations. We questioned local suspects, including people linked to jewellery businesses in Deesa, to ascertain their possible role in planning the crime or handling the stolen property,” said Sumbe.
