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- Ex-PSI Shankar Jasak led an Rs 36.48 crore SBI robbery.
- Stole 27 kg of gold and cash from Jalgaon bank.
- Dismissed earlier for similar bank heist.
A former Maharashtra Police Sub-Inspector (PSI) has been named in a robbery at a State Bank of India (SBI) branch in Jalgaon’s Bhokar village. Earlier, the cop was dismissed from the department for a similar offence. This time, the ex-cop, along with three accomplices, stole around Rs 36 crore from the bank, including 27 kg of gold ornaments. The arrested cop was identified as Shankar Ramesh Jasak. The other two accused were identified as Ankush Tulsiram Pawar, 26, from Burhanpur district in Madhya Pradesh, and Ankush Shravan Chavan, 30, from Ramdevwadi in Jalgaon district.
How was the heist carried out?
The incident occurred on October 31, between 2:45 and 3:15 in the afternoon. Four men wearing helmets and covering their faces entered the bank armed with two pistols, knives and wooden sticks. The four threatened the bank manager, cashier and other employees, forced them to open the lockers and allegedly tied their hands and covered their mouths.
The security guard, identified as Sandeep Koli, attempted to stop the thieves but was injured in the firing. They allegedly flew in two motorcycles with Rs 12.26 lakh in cash and an estimated 27 kg of gold ornaments stored in 16 lockers. The gold was valued at Rs 36.36 crore, taking the total value of the stolen property to Rs 36.48 crore.
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As they left the bank premises, the emergency alarm alerted the people in the nearby areas. Locals and police patil then joined the pursuit and alerted the cops. The four accused fled towards Dharangaon. On the way, the accused allegedly left four bags containing stolen valuables near Chavalkheda.
The police officials then traced the accused. Two were found hiding in a field, while the others were intercepted. Police arrested all four after resistance, during which some personnel sustained minor injuries.
What does the investigation say?
The police said that Jasak allegedly planned the heist with Gajanan Rajendra Pawar, 32, whom he had met while lodged in Jalgaon district prison. Pawar had been previously arrested in a murder case in 2024 and was subsequently released on bail. Three of the suspects had reportedly become acquainted in jail and remained in contact after their release. They allegedly planned the robbery before bringing a fourth person into the operation.
The Cop Who Turned Thief
The mastermind of the plan was Shankar Ramesh Jasak (42). Jasak was appointed as a PSI in the 113th batch of the Maharashtra Police in 2015 and posted to the Raigad district police force. In December 2018, the now 42-year-old man was named in a case following an ACB trap in Mahad. The PSI was then suspended. However, days later he was posted at the Raigad district police control room, the Jalgaon police said.
The cop was again named an accused in an Rs 3.17-crore robbery at an SBI branch in Jalgaon in 2023. The case was registered at the Shani Peth police station under sections 394 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Noting the serious offences, the then Special Inspector General of Police Praveen Pawar dismissed him from service that year. His father and brother-in-law, who worked as a security guard at the same bank, were also named as accused in the case.