'ATM attacker dead or with Naxalites in AP forests'

After extensive search, police have failed to even identify him

The man, who brutally attacked a woman inside an ATM kiosk of Corporation Bank exactly two years, is possibly dead or has joined Naxalites in the deep forests of Andhra Pradesh or Odisha, policemen who were part of the operation to trace him suspect.

The Bengaluru police have reached an absolute dead end in their efforts to identify or nab him and admit as much.

Jyothi Uday, 47, then section manager in charge of cheque truncation system at Corporation Bank, Service Branch, Mission Road, suffered severe head injuries in the attack.

She had entered the ATM kiosk around 7:10 am on November 19, 2013, to withdraw cash when a machete-wielding man entered, pulled a gun out of his bag and threatened her. When she resisted, he attacked her with a sickle and she passed out. He then snatched her cellphone and fled.

“We have data but it doesn’t show anything about his background. We have done our best and are still doing,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) M Chandrashekhar told Deccan Herald on Wednesday.

Another senior police officer said, “Establishing the attacker’s identity is the biggest challenge. Nobody knows him, his background, native place, occupation or other details. No police station or prison in South India has his details. The only available evidence is CCTV footage. Even his fingerprints haven’t been of much help.”

Nearly 500 policemen, including senior officers from South India and three Bengaluru police commissioners (Raghavendra Auradkar, M N Reddi and N S Megharik) worked hard.
Police circulated 40,000 posters containing the attacker’s details in Kannada, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. Even a bounty of Rs five lakh for information leading to his arrest didn’t help.
Soon after the incident, police verified registers of all lodges in Bengaluru, suspecting that he stayed there.

They hunted for him in Hindupur, Anantapur, Kadiri, Dharmavaram and Penukonda in Andhra Pradesh and Kolar, Mulbagal, Tumakuru, Pavagad and Madhugiri in Karnataka. Meetings were held with Panchayat Development Officers and the railway police, but nothing came out of them.
 
It’s disappointing: Jyothi’s husband
Jyothi’s husband Uday Kumar expressed disappointment over police failure to catch the attacker. “This incident took place two years ago. He should have been caught long ago. Unfortunately, no one is even aware of his whereabouts,” he said.
Jyothi has resumed work but continues to be on medication for debility and has been advised to visit the doctor every three months.