Thane (Maharashtra), Jun 28 (IANS): In one of the biggest incidents of its kind in the state, armed dacoits stormed into a cash management firm here and decamped with around Rs.12 crore cash, police said on Tuesday.

The incident happened around 3 a.m. when at least six-eight armed desperadoes wielding guns, revolvers and knives broke into the offices of CheckMate Pvt. Services Ltd, near Teen Haat Naka.

They snapped the wires of the CCTV cameras to escape detection and looted the cash kept in a van for disbursal to various bank ATMs, at the company's offices in Hiradeep Society.

The cash van had been loaded with currency chests a short while previously and was preparing to go on its regular rounds to refill cash at ATMs when the dacoits struck.

A police spokesperson said the investigations are being handled by the Crime Branch, and Police Commissioner Parambir Singh is personally monitoring this.

Police have erected road blocks and check posts on all major roads connecting Thane city in an effort to nab the culprits.

The company is headquartered in Vadodara, Gujarat, and has branches in 24 states offering cash management services to banks, corporate, financial institutions and the like.