Nagpur: In a swift operation led by Nagpur Police Crime Branch, four men were arrested for a daring ₹50-lakh armed robbery and attempt to murder a city grain merchant. The accused, who meticulously tracked the victim’s movements and even stole getaway vehicles in advance, were nabbed within days of the September 10 attack.

According to Jaripatka police, Rajiv Rupchand Dipani (47), a grain trader residing at Plot No. 8, Rajat Vihar, Mecosabagh, was carrying ₹50 lakh in an airbag on his Activa scooter (MH-14-DE-5798) around 7.45 p.m. when two men on a black motorcycle intercepted him near Sheraton Apartments on the Bezonbagh–Kadbi Chowk Road.

The assailants allegedly kicked his scooter, sprayed a chemical on his face, and one of them fired three rounds from a country-made pistol into Dipani’s back before snatching the cash bag and fleeing. He was rushed to hospital in critical condition.

Given the gravity of the case, Police Commissioner Ravinder Kumar Singal ordered a parallel probe by the Crime Branch under Joint CP Navinchandra Reddy and Additional CP (Crime) Vasant Paradeshi. Seven special teams fanned out across Maharashtra and neighbouring states as Dipani remained in intensive care, limiting direct interrogation.

Technical analysis and inputs from informants revealed the suspects had left Maharashtra. Acting on fresh intelligence that they were returning to Nagpur, police set up a trap and arrested:

Simarjitsingh Santasingh Sandhu (40) – resident of Shri Muktsar Sahib, Punjab
Sheikh Hussain alias Javed Sheikh Bashir Savare (37) – Raut Nagar, Umred Road, Nagpur
Abdul Naveed Abdul Javed (33) – CA Road, Ganeshpeth, Nagpur
Syed Zeeshan Syed Rehman (32) – Mayyappa Nagar, Jafar Nagar, Nagpur

Investigators found the plot was hatched weeks earlier. Sandhu allegedly summoned out-of-state accomplices, and the gang kept Dipani’s office under surveillance to learn his cash-movement routine. They had also stolen motorcycles in Nagpur for use in the crime and later abandoned them in Wadi to destroy evidence.

Police seized property worth ₹21.11 lakh, including three stolen motorcycles, two four-wheelers, a country-made firearm with one live cartridge, five mobile phones, and ₹65,000 in cash. The suspects confessed to dividing the stolen money and fleeing the city immediately after the attack.

The accused and seized material have been handed over to Jaripatka police for further investigation under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Senior officers credited DCP Rahul Makanikar, ACP Abhijit Patil, PI Kamalakar Gaddime, and a 20-member Crime Branch team for the breakthrough.

Police said efforts are underway to trace any additional conspirators and recover the remaining stolen amount.