ALERT: Rajkot Gold Heist, Murder Case Solved: Police Arrest 9 Including 4 Former Employees
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Police have arrested nine men, including four former staff members, for shooting dead a gold factory manager and looting ₹1.5 crore worth of bullion in Rajkot's Aji GIDC area.
Laljibhai Lavjibhai Sardhara, 53, a manager at Tanvi Gold for 15 years, was ambushed on Wednesday evening while carrying 1 kg of gold and 3 kg of silver ornaments on a scooter from the firm's warehouse to its production unit. Four men in a black car intercepted him and fired three rounds at point-blank range when he fought off the robbery attempt.
Sardhara was rushed to a nearby private hospital but was declared dead on arrival.
Ex-Employees Orchestrated Industrial Estate Ambush
Special investigation teams quickly established that the robbery was planned inside the company. Four of the nine suspects arrested had worked at Tanvi Gold until six months ago, giving them direct knowledge of daily transfer schedules, routes, and security gaps inside the industrial estate.
The remaining five suspects handled logistics, supplied the getaway vehicle, and mapped out escape paths across state lines. Police tracked the gang's movement using CCTV footage from exit routes around Aji GIDC and technical surveillance, tracing part of the module across the state border.
Joint teams from the Rajkot Crime Branch and local police executed coordinated raids in Udaipur, Rajasthan, picking up key suspects hiding in the city. Officers arrested the remaining gang members in separate raids across Rajkot.
Citywide Dragnet and Market Protests
The murder triggered immediate anger across local trade groups, prompting the Rajkot Gold Dealers Association to enforce a half-day market shutdown in protest against rising crime in industrial zones. Association representatives met senior officers to demand tighter security measures across manufacturing hubs.
In response to the daylight attack, Rajkot Police Commissioner activated a full citywide naka bandi (roadblock), deploying units from the Special Operations Group (SOG), Local Crime Branch (LCB), Prohibition Crime Branch (PCB), and Thorala Police Station to seal district borders.
"The four former employees used their familiarity with the firm's routines to target the victim," a senior police official investigating the case confirmed. "Nine people are in custody, and teams are completing transit formalities to bring the suspects arrested in Rajasthan back to Rajkot."
Police will hold a detailed press conference once all nine suspects arrive in Rajkot to present recovered gold and silver bullion, seized weapons, the getaway car, and the formal charge sheet under murder and armed robbery laws.
