SBI ATM looted in Adilabad; police suspect interstate gang

Unidentified miscreants looted cash from an SBI ATM in Adilabad’s Ramnagar by cutting open the locker with gas cutters after disabling CCTV cameras, marking a return of ATM thefts after four years.

Adilabad: Unidentified persons looted cash from a State Bank of India (SBI) ATM at Ramnagar in Adilabad town by cutting open the locker with gas cutters in the early hours of Saturday, marking a return of ATM thefts in the district after a four-year gap.

Police said the miscreants disabled the CCTV surveillance by spraying black paint on the cameras before executing the theft. They then used gas cutters to break open the ATM’s cash vault and fled with the money. The exact amount stolen will be known once SBI officials file a formal complaint. The incident caused a flutter in the town.

Adilabad DSP L Jeevan Reddy, along with Inspectors Karre Swamy and Sunil Kumar, inspected the scene and launched an investigation. Police suspect that an inter-state gang, likely from the northern parts of the country, was involved, citing the professional manner in which the theft was carried out.

A similar incident was reported in February 2021, when four masked individuals uprooted an ATM machine from a kiosk at the Collectorate Chowrasta using a vehicle and rope. They took away Rs. 20 lakh and later dumped the machine’s remnants on the outskirts of Battisavargaon village in Adilabad Rural mandal.