Hazaribagh, April 15 : A petrol pump manager was shot dead by unidentified criminals while he was on his way to deposit cash at a bank in Jharkhand's Hazaribagh district on Tuesday, police officials said.

The incident occurred in the Ichak police station area, highlighting the deteriorating law and order situation in the region.

The victim has been identified as Shankar Kumar, a resident of the Hazaribagh district.

According to the police, Shankar was carrying the cash collection of the last four days from the petrol pump located at Salparni on the busy Ranchi-Patna Road.

He left the premises around 11 a.m. on Tuesday when he was intercepted by the assailants, who attempted to rob him.

Eyewitnesses said that when Shankar resisted the robbery attempt, the attackers opened fire at him. He sustained fatal gunshot wounds and died on the spot. The assailants fled the scene with the money.

Upon receiving information about the incident, a police team from Ichak police station reached the spot and launched an investigation. Forensic experts were also called in, and CCTV footage from nearby areas is being scanned to identify the attackers.

This incident is the latest in a string of violent crimes reported from Hazaribagh in recent months. Five days ago, on April 10, a 25-year-old youth named Prabhat Kumar was brutally murdered with a sharp weapon in the Khirgaon locality of the city. The killing had sparked public outrage, with local residents blocking the Hazaribagh-Simaria road for nearly six hours in protest against the rising crime.

On March 8, Kumar Gaurav, Deputy General Manager (Dispatch and Billing) at NTPC's Keredari mining project, was gunned down by criminals while he was on his way in a company vehicle to his workplace. That murder also led to widespread protests and a three-day halt in operations at NTPC's mining projects.

/IANS