Three to four armed assailants stormed into a house in Chickpet in Bengaluru on Friday afternoon, held the occupants hostage, attacked them, and stole valuables and cash of nearly Rs 2 lakh.
The Bengaluru police said the robbery took place between 3.40 pm and 4.20 pm Friday. A case has been registered under Section 311 (robbery or dacoity with an attempt to cause death or grievous hurt) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) by the City Market police, said the police.
In his complaint, Nagaraju Shindhe, a 27-year-old silversmith, said his father had gone for a walk, and he and his mother, Nitha Shindhe, 45, were home. At around 3.40 pm, the assailants broke in, brandishing a knife and a “silver-coloured gun-like item.” They forced Shindhe to lock the doors and windows before tying him and his mother with nylon ropes and putting black tape over their mouths.
Speaking in Hindi, the robbers demanded valuables and keys. When the family resisted, one attacker cut Shindhe’s neck lightly with the knife. His mother, who panicked and shouted, was also injured, sustaining a cut on her right hand.
According to Shindhe, the robbers stole a 20-gram gold chain worth Rs 1.20 lakh, six-gram earrings valued at Rs 36,000, and Rs 33,000 in cash from their locker and prayer area. The assailants locked the mother and son in a washroom before fleeing, he added.
Later, Shindhe managed to free and raise the alarm. The City Market police have launched an investigation and are conducting a manhunt to track the suspects.