Guard injured foiling robbery bid at ATM

Murugan, 38, a security guard at a Corporation Bank ATM on Kammanahalli Main Road in Ramaswamypalya, was attacked and injured by two unidentified men early on Tuesday morning.

The assailants fled after the guard put up a doughty resistance and foiled their attempt to loot cash from the machine. Murugan was rushed to a nearby private hospital and is out of danger, police said.

The attack occurred between 1.15 am and 1.30 am when Murugan was dozing in his chair. The two suspects, aged around 25, parked their bike near the ATM, picked a quarrel with the guard, who grew suspicious of their motives and questioned them.

They, however, pushed him down and forcibly entered the kiosk. When Murugan resisted, one of them attacked him with a knife, injuring him on his neck and left hand.
A bleeding Murugan managed to push them out and gave them a chase, while calling out for help. Murugan’s relative Raghu, a security guard at an HDFC ATM on the same lane, on hearing his cries, rushed to his rescue. However, the duo sped away on the bike under the cover of darkness, Raghu said.

On being alerted, the night patrol police rushed to the scene and shifted him to hospital.

According to a police inspector, the entire scuffle lasted about three minutes. The duo, who had neither masked their faces nor wore helmets, seem to be from the Northeast.
The ATM centre had a CCTV camera and burglary alarm, as directed by the City police commissioner after the brutal attack on Corporation Bank staffer Jyothi Uday inside an ATM in November last year.

Murugan, a native of Tamil Nadu, had settled in Bangalore five years ago and was staying with his family in Ramaswamypalya. His wife sells vegetables opposite the ATM, police said.