Kalpetta

A76-year-old man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison and fined Rs 16,000 for his role in the 1988 robbery at the Nallurnad Service Cooperative Bank in Wayanad. The sentence was handed down by Additional District and Sessions Court Judge L Jayavanth.

The convict, Abdul Samad, a Kollam native, was arrested by police in October 2024 and faced trial while in judicial custody. The court said he will have to undergo another 10 months in prison if he fails to pay the fine.

According to police, the robbery took place in the early hours of January 8, 1988, when a six-member gang arrived at the bank in a car, broke open the locks and entered the premises. The gang took away a safe, nearly one kilogram of gold ornaments and Rs 5,544 in cash.

The prosecution said two people who reached the bank after hearing the noise were attacked with a crowbar. In the case, four accused -- Subair, Suresh Babu, Alikkutty and Naseer -- were arrested and sentenced in 1993. Another accused, OK Babu, who had remained absconding, surrendered before the court in 2017 and was later sentenced.

During the trial, the court examined around 40 witnesses. The prosecution produced 166 documents as evidence and 21 material objects seized under the mahazar before the court.

The initial investigation was carried out by the then Mananthavady police and was later taken over by the District CBCID. Public Prosecutor E R Santhosh Kumar appeared for the prosecution.