The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Thieves draw Rs. 96,000 using stolen debit card

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Friday, Mar 28, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Thieves draw Rs. 96,000 using stolen debit card

Staff Reporter

Bank asked to provide footage from ATM surveillance camera

The account holder apparently stored the PIN in mobile phone
Police suspect cash was drawn in Bangalore

Bangalore: The thieves who drugged and robbed six passengers of Udyan Express on Tuesday night withdrew Rs. 96,000 from an ATM using an ICICI Bank current account debit card of one of the victims, Ashok K. Prajapathi, a Mumbai garment merchant. The account was with Avenue Road branch of the bank.

Mr. Prajapathi had complained to the City Railway police station that his debit card was used by the robbers who had made away with his belongings after drugging him on Thursday. Quoting Mr. Prajapathi, Circle Inspector (Railways) Udaya Bhaskar told The Hindu that the thieves might have got the PIN of his account either from the stolen wallet or the mobile phone which had the details. The police have asked ICICI Bank to provide details of the transactions, location of the ATM from which the money was withdrawn and the video footage from the surveillance camera.

Mr. Prajapathi and five other passengers were robbed on Udyan Express on Tuesday after they were drugged with barbiturates. Superintendent of Police (Railways) B. Shivakumar told The Hindu that they had asked their Mumbai counterparts to provide details of the thieves who had booked their tickets and travelled in S9 compartment.

Mr. Shivakumar said the Raichur, Gulbarga and Wadi police stations had been alerted and instructed to keep a watch on suspicious passengers. The police suspect that the thieves might have used the debit card in Bangalore, but they were not sure as the investigation was not yet over.

The police said the thieves might be operating from Solapur in Maharashtra or Raichur in Karnataka.

Case to be transferred

The police said the case would be transferred to Wadi Railway police station where the incident occurred.

The sketches of the suspected thieves would be released in a day or two soon after another victim Aravind, who is still under treatment, obliges to cooperate with them, said the police.

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