Kolkata Police STF constable arrested in 2.7 crore mid-day cab heist case

KOLKATA: Nine days after a heist of Rs 2.7 crore from a taxi in central Kolkata, the Kolkata Police detective department arrested a KP Special Task Force constable. Six others had been arrested in this case earlier.Mintu Sarkar (43) was taken into custody from the detective department office on Tuesday. Sarkar, a resident of Chandail village in South Dinajpur, has been suspended from his job pending enquiry, said Lalbazar officials."We are looking into his exact role. We can confirm that he was roped into this gang through a key player who is yet to be arrested. This key player is also the same person with whom the main architect of the crime — Riju Hazra (27), an employee of the forex firm whose money was looted — is linked. Hazra and Sarkar were not directly in correspondence. At least three other names are under scanner. It is too early to comment if anyone else with a police background was involved.Sarkar's name came up when we questio-ned the other accused," said an officer. Sarkar was presented at Sealdah court and was sent to police custody until May 28. The city has witnessed the arrest of at least 11 cops from Kolkata Police and Howrah City Police since 2022 for allegedly being involved in crimes where traders or their employees were put in fear of arrest and their money and ornaments snatched, or plainly cheating the public with fake jobs. The current robbery under investigation occurred on May 5. Prior to Sarkar's arrest, the police had apprehended Sanjib Das alias Pocha, Mohammad Sarfaraz alias Sonu, Riju Hazra, Shahrukh Sheikh, Alamgir Khan, and Amiruddin alias Gujjar from various locations, including Entally, Subhasgram, and Mathurapur. "The involvement of an employee, and now, a police constable, indicates this was a well-planned operation with multiple layers of insider information," said an officer.Till date, cops have recovered Rs 71.9 lakh of the stolen money. "Recovery operations are ongoing, and we expect to retrieve the remaining amount soon," the officer added.This case reminded cops of an arrest under similar circumstances when three cops — two constables and a civic volunteer from Ekbalpore Police — were arrested in 2022 for allegedly threatening and assaulting two forex firm employees carrying Rs 33.3 lakh cash to deposit at a local bank, and snatching the same from them after confining them to a hotel room.