Ludhiana: The Ludhiana police have arrested two of the six accused, who had tried to rob an ATM kiosk near Noorwala Road in the wee hours of May 20 and had also fired gunshots at the PCR team to escape from the spot. With the arrest of the accused, the police claimed to have solved four more cases of ATM loots that the gangsters had executed in Ludhiana, Jalandhar and Kapurthala in the past one year.The arrested accused are Deepak Kumar alias Deepu Bihari of Guru Nanakpura, Sultanwind in Amritsar and Jasminder Singh alias Jass, of New Kotmil Singh aere of Tarn Taran. The police said Deepak was a habitual offender, who has 21 FIRs on him, including murder attempt, murder, robbery, Arms Act, Prison Act, and NDPS Act violations across Amritsar and Bathinda. However, Jasminder does not have a criminal record. The police have also recovered a .32 bore pistol with two live cartridges, an industrial gas cutter set, a gas cylinder, a portable cutting machine and a Maruti Suzuki Ertiga (PB-01-D-0707).Commissioner of Police, Ludhiana, Swapan Sharma, said both accused along with their four accomplices had attempted to loot an ATM on the intervening night May 19-20 near Noorwala Road, Shivpuri Chowk. While the suspects were cutting an ATM vault, an electrical short-circuit triggered a fire, forcing them to flee. Intercepted by a PCR Tango-6 patrol team, the suspects opened direct fire upon the police personnel and escaped.Sharma added, the police first arrested Jasminder Singh alias Jass on May 25 along with the getaway vehicle. His disclosure revealed that a six-member gang from Amritsar had come to Ludhiana to target the ATM. Acting on his tip off, the police raided a hideout on June 2 and arrested the second accused Deepak Kumar alias Deepu Bihari from whom the weapon used in the crime was seized.The commissioner further stated that the gang conducted daytime recces of isolated ATMs and targeted them at night using high-temperature gas cutters. They have confessed to multiple ATM robberies across Ludhiana, Jalandhar, and Kapurthala.The official added that the accused had robbed an ATM in Jalandhar Cantt on May 5, 2025, another one in Rama Mandi, Jalandhar on July 19, 2025, in Phagwara and Ludhiana’s Jodhewal area on December 27, 2025. The police are trying to nab the remaining accused.
