CHENNAI: Investigating a jewellery theft complaint from a Maduravoyal resident, the police found that the complainant’s niece had handed over jewels weighing 129 sovereigns to her boyfriend, who spun a web of lies and cheated her to fund his lavish lifestyle.

The police arrested the 21-year-old and four of his associates, who allegedly sold the jewels and splurged the money on luxury items, including a car, motorcycle, and mobile phones.

The arrested people were identified as H Karthik (21) of Shenoy Nagar, Kumaragopal (20) and Prakash (22) of Avadi, Ramesh (47) of Nandanam, and Surya (28) of Mathur. The girl is also being questioned, said the police.
The complainant, Panneerselvam (51), a resident of Lakshmi Nagar in Maduravoyal, approached the police after he realised that 22 sovereigns of jewellery that he gave to his sister-in-law were missing. Further probe revealed that 107 sovereigns belonging to his sister-in-law, too, were missing. As there were no signs of forced entry, the police suspected the involvement of someone within the family.

Their investigations revealed that Panneerselvam's 19-year-old niece took the jewellery in instalments and handed them over to her boyfriend, Karthik, who allegedly cheated the young girl claiming that his father was ill and needed money for treatment.

The arrested persons were produced before a magistrate and remanded in judicial custody. The police have recovered six sovereigns of jewellery, Rs 50,000 cash, a car, and a two wheeler from the accused.