Container lorry with coins valued at Rs. 20 lakh found without escort in Coimbatore

In yet another instance of cash being transported in a casual manner, a mini container lorry with coins of a public sector bank, valued at Rs 20 lakh, was found without an escort and reportedly manned by a drunk driver.

Police said the vehicle sped past a check post and was brought to a halt after they gave chase and intercepted it.

The driver, who was drunk, said the lorry had come from Chennai to this city with Rs 20 lakh in coins, meant to be distributed to Syndicate bank’s branches here. Police said there was no escort vehicle for the mini container lorry.

The vehicle was released after the driver produced documents to substantiate his claims. He was fined for drunken driving and the lorry was allowed to proceed with police escort, they added.

In the run up to the Tamil Nadu assembly polls, electoral officials had seized about Rs 570 crore from three containers during a check in nearby Tirupur district on May 14.

The occupants of the vehicles had claimed it was meant to be transferred from the State Bank of India, Coimbatore to its Vishakapatnam branches.

On August 9, in a daring heist in a moving train, Rs five crore out of Rs 340 crore cash being sent to RBI here from Salem in Tamil Nadu was found stolen.

The incident came to light when four of the 226 boxes stacked with the cash were found tampered with on arrival of the train in Chennai.