Police have arrested another accomplice in the sensational robbery at ESAF Small Finance Bank in Khitola, recovering 350 grams of robbed gold jewellery worth Rs 60 lakh and the 7.65 mm country-made pistol used in the crime. The arrested accused has been identified as Chhotu alias Sarman Mehto (23), a resident of Mayra village in Gaya district of Bihar. It may be noted that the robbery took place on August 11, 2025, when five armed men entered the ESAF Small Finance Bank branch in Khitola, threatened employees with firearms and escaped with 14.8 kg of mortgaged gold jewellery and nearly Rs 5 lakh in cash. Following the incident, Inspector General of Police, Jabalpur Zone, Pramod Verma, had announced a reward of Rs 30,000 for information leading to the arrest of the accused. SIT comprising officers from the Crime Branch and district police was constituted under the guidance of senior police officials.

 

Additional SP (Crime) Jitendra Singh, while addressing a press conference, on Monday, informed that the breakthrough came after the arrest of main accused, Sunil Paswan, a resident of Banahi village in Gaya, Bihar, on July 15, 2026. During police remand and interrogation, Paswan disclosed that he had sold portions of his share of the looted gold with the help of Chhotu Mehto while the remaining jewellery had been kept with him. Acting on this information, Khitola police and Crime Branch, with assistance from the Bihar Special Task Force, detained Chhotu Mehto from Sherghati in Gaya district. During interrogation, he revealed the location where the remaining gold had been hidden. Based on the disclosure, police recovered 350 grams of gold jewellery valued at around Rs 60 lakh. Investigators also seized the country-made pistol used during the robbery from Sunil Paswan. Both accused were brought to Jabalpur after obtaining police remand. ASP, Singh said the successful recovery of the looted gold and the arrest of the accused were made possible through the coordinated efforts of the Crime Branch and Khitola Police.