Mysore/Mysuru:  A gang of five armed men barged into a service station-cum-petrol bunk at Bilikere in Hunsur taluk on the night of Feb. 12.  The incident occurred at around 10.30 pm at Swami Petrol Bunk & Service Station in Karimuddanahalli near Bilkere, where the dacoits assaulted two staff members and looted Rs. 15,300.

The robbery and assault were captured on CCTV cameras. The gang arrived in a Skoda Slavia car without a number plate, initially pretending to refuel. They then forced their way into the office, attacked the staff with deadly weapons, snatched the cash and fled.

According to the Police complaint, cashier Ajay Kumar was handling the day’s accounts when, at about 9.49 pm, a man aged around 26 to 27 years arrived at the station.

He first filled a bottle with drinking water and later asked for diesel. Ajay Kumar informed him that the pump had already been switched off, but offered five litres of stored diesel. The man scanned the Paytm QR code with his mobile phone, saying he would make the payment within ten minutes and return.

At approximately 10.22 pm, the same man returned with four armed accomplices in a car without a number plate. Armed with daggers and machetes, the group barged into the office, assaulted Ajay Kumar and another staff member, Dinesh, and demanded to know where the cash was kept.

During the scuffle, one of the assailants snatched Rs. 15,300 from the cashier’s desk. Ajay Kumar managed to escape and raise an alarm. In their haste, the attackers left behind a machete inside the office before fleeing towards nearby fields.

Ajay Kumar sustained injuries to his left arm and back, while Dinesh suffered wounds to his forehead and right shoulder. Both were treated at Surya Yashodha Hospital before a complaint was lodged at the Bilikere Police Station.

Bilikere Police, who have registered a case, have secured the abandoned weapon and launched an investigation to trace the culprits.