News
Private security firm driver suspected of stealing Rs. 6m from money he was transporting
A driver who worked for a security firm that transported money for a leading private bank has been arrested for allegedly stealing Rs 6.6 million from money intended for deposit at teller machines, apparently because he wanted to settle divorce claims, police said.
Explaining the robbery, Narahenpita Crimes Division Chief Inspector (CI) A.M.P.A.R. Amarapola, said, the 25 year-old driver from Eppawala, regularly transported Rs 13.3 million in 18 separate bags to be deposited at the bank’s Automated Teller Machines (ATM’s) along with two bank employees and two security guards of the private firm.
According to the Chief Inspector the suspect had on several previous occasions tried to rob the money but failed as one officer was always present.
On this particular occasion the bank employees had been depositing cash in the ATM machines, starting from Kegalle. When they reached Kandy, the driver had parked the vehicle in the bank’s basement parking lot. The two bank employees had got off the vehicle to deposit the money in the ATM machine while the two security officers had gone into the bank to collect more cash.
“The safe in the vehicle has three keys – one with the driver and the other two with the bank officers. However the bank officers had given their keys to the driver as the security guards were bringing the cash to be transported. He removed the money when he had all three keys in his possession as no one was present,” CI Amarapola said.
Once the security guards and the bank employees returned they continued their journey and only realized that one of the bags of money was missing when they reached an ATM machine in Digana, off Kandy.
On suspicion the security officers had searched the car for the missing bag but they could not find it.
When they returned Colombo, the driver was instructed to park the vehicle at the parking lot of the security firm in Orugodawatte.
According to CI Amarapola the driver who was boarded at a lodging in Grandpass had returned to the vehicle park around 12.30 a.m. and removed the bag of money containing the Rs. 6.6 that he had hidden in the battery box under the engine.
The suspect had taken that money and put Rs 50,000, in his purse of which he spent Rs. 5,000 at a ‘Spa’ in Wellawatte, paid a foreign prostitute Rs. 25,000 and offered Rs 10,000 as a tip to another woman who had already removed Rs 10,000 from his purse while he was in the bathroom. The rest of the money remained in the bag that was locked.
While the suspect was returning from Wellawatte with the bag of money on his motorcycle he received instructions from the security company to report to office the following day.
As he approached the Grandpass area he was stopped at a police road block where he was questioned.
“Initially he told the police officers that the money was for a court case, and subsequently admitted that it was stolen from the bank money,” CI Amarapola said, adding, that the suspect had said the money was needed for a divorce settlement.