The bank had just opened for the day when the incident occurred. The criminals reportedly arrived in a Tata Sumo and stormed into the bank. They snatched the keys to the vault from the security manager after holding the security guards at gunpoint.

“The dacoits have made away with Rs 3.80 lakh. They assaulted me when I asked them what they wanted,” said bank manager Sudhir Adhikary.

Jayanto Mahato, an ASI with the Bally police station, had arrived at the bank for a routine visit when the dacoits were about to leave. They managed to snatch his mobile phone and service revolver.

A bag left by the dacoits after their hour-long operation caused a lot of chaos in the area. “We initially thought the bag contained a bomb. But it was probably left behind by them intentionally to confuse everyone,” said a senior police officer.