Guwahati: In a bold act of daytime crime, miscreants looted Rs 2 lakh from a parked vehicle near the State Bank of India’s main branch in Kokrajhar on Monday, triggering renewed concerns over public safety in the area. The victim, Barenda Basumatary, a businessman from Gwjwnpuri village, had stepped away briefly to photocopy documents, leaving a bag of cash inside his Bolero. Seizing the moment, an unidentified person smashed the vehicle’s window and fled with the money.
A First Information Report (FIR) has been lodged at the Kokrajhar Police Station, and police have initiated a probe into the theft. Authorities have also begun examining CCTV footage and nearby witness accounts as part of the investigation.
This latest incident follows a troubling pattern of daylight robberies in Kokrajhar. On June 26, 2024, Rs 34 lakh was snatched from a man near Axis Bank on JD Road by two bike-borne assailants. Less than two weeks later, on July 9, a forest department official lost Rs 2.15 lakh in a clever distraction-based theft near UCO Bank.
The recurrence of such crimes has sparked widespread public anxiety and raised serious questions about local law enforcement and surveillance measures. In response, police officials have pledged intensified patrolling in key commercial zones and assured swift action to track down the culprits.