KARACHI, Oct 6: Bandits took away Rs4.5 million and a security guard’s gun in a bank heist committed in North Nazimabad on Thursday morning.

The robbery took place at an HBL branch in Block C of North Nazimabad near the Asghar Ali Shah stadium. At around 11.20am, seven to eight armed men entered the bank. First they disarmed the lone private security guard, who was having tea at the time.

After snatching his repeater, they held the staff and customers at the bank at gunpoint, warning them not to move, police said.

They walked up to the cashier, manhandled him and collected the money present at the cash counter. Later they went up to the strong room and collected the cash bags.

Before leaving the premises, they asked the bank staff to surrender the DVR (digital video recorder) connected to the CCTV (closed-circuit television). However, when they disconnected the lead from the system, the CCTV was still on. Then they demanded that the staff show them the real DVR system, which they took away, SP Raja Umar Khatab said, adding that they were aware of the dummy and real systems installed at the bank.

Police said the entire episode took 15 minutes; the suspects used a Hi-roof and a motorcycle for transport.

“The security guard, Abdul Samad, had only one cartridge in his repeater. He was hired three days back by his employers, the ‘Rescue private security company,’” SP Khattab told Dawn.

After questioning the guard, the police said that apparently the guard had no role in the heist. He hailed from Darra Adamkhail and was employed in Dubai before coming to Karachi a few months back, the SP added.

Quoting the guard, the SP said his purpose of staying and taking up employment in Karachi was to learn English. The suspects also took away a cellphone of bank manager Mohammad Tariq.

The police said the bank staff were not cooperating with them in the investigation, adding that there were eight suspects, but the bank staff told the police that they could not see their faces.

An FIR (459/2011) under Section 395 (punishment for dacoity) of the Pakistan Penal Code was registered at the North Nazimabad police station on a complaint of the bank manager against unidentified suspects.

This year 10 bank heists have been committed in the city, of which four are still untraced, police data shows.