Manipur: Miscreants loot State Co-operative Bank Ltd. in Kangpokpi district

Another bank in Manipur has fallen victim to a looting incident, further exacerbating the ongoing unrest in the hill state. The incident follows a recent bank heist in Churachandpur, where valuables worth Rs 1.5 crore were allegedly stolen.

This time, the Manipur State Co-operative Bank Ltd. in Kangpokpi District was targeted by unidentified miscreants. The bank had remained closed since May 4, 2023, due to the prevailing law and order situation in the state.

On July 12, when bank officials, including Deputy Manager Ngaoni Dovei, Senior Account Assistant Mr. L. Haongam, and MTS Mr. Lamginhao Chongloi, arrived to resume banking services, they saw that the branch had been vandalized, and valuable items were looted, causing huge losses to the bank.

Among the stolen items were six computer sets, one Cannon printer, and the hard drive of a CCTV camera. Additionally, the cash vault was found broken, although no cash had been looted as a precautionary measure taken by the branch, which had removed all cash from the vault and ATM in mid-May 2023, as advised by the Head Office.

An FIR has been lodged at the Kangpokpi Police Station, urging necessary action to be taken against the culprits responsible for the damage and theft of the bank's property.

This incident comes on the heels of the Churachandpur bank heist, where the Axis Bank, closed for nearly two months, suffered losses estimated at Rs 1.5 crore. Cash and gold ornaments were reported to have been stolen from the bank. Unidentified looters had drilled a hole as an entry point into the bank's concrete building, taking advantage of the absence of the branch manager.

The staff at the Axis Bank expressed limited knowledge about the theft, as the branch manager was absent during the incident.