Four-member gang held for silk saree theft

A team of police officers led by Tirumangalam station inspector was conducting a regular vehicle check near Padi flyover when they found the gang — Kanagadurga (60), Balu Mahindra (40), Nagamani (35) and Meena (20)in a car.

As the vehicle did not have proper documents, the police took them for interrogation. During questioning, it was revealed that they were involved in many silk saree theft cases in the city. The police are now hunting for the main suspect.

“They have nearly five pending cases against them. They would pose as customers and when the staff are showing them sarees, the women would steal them,” an investigating officer said. Recently they had stolen 16 silk sarees worth Rs15 lakh from a shop in Ashok Nagar.

Explaining the modus operandi, the police said that the gang, hailing from Andhra Pradesh, will reach the shop in a car and they will engage the staff with multiple demands. The women members would slip the sarees into a pouch hidden between their legs. The suspects have cases against them in Anna Nagar, Tirumangalam and Alwarpet and also in Salem.

The police have confirmed the identity of the suspects by matching the imageswith that of a CCTV footage taken from the shop inAshok Nagar.