Gang bludgeons guard to death for stopping robbery, 3 arrested

While three members of the gang have been arrested, the fourth accused is still at large.

Venkatesan, a resident of Prakash Nagar in Thirunindraoor, intervened when the four men on two two-wheelers tried to rob a lorry driver named Shivakumar after assaulting him.

Two men of the gang attacked Venkatesan with an iron rod, killing him on the spot. Then the gang escaped from the scene.

Shivakumar, who suffered serious head injuries in the incident, has been admitted to a hospital. He is in a critical stage. A few other lorry drivers, who were resting in the area, were also injured in the robbery attempt. The Muthapudupet police said that they have secured three of the four suspects by Friday evening using CCTV footages. They added that they were on the look-out for the fourth accused.

The police said that the lorry drivers usually park their vehicles near Nemilicherry toll plaza construction site overnight. The gang was under the influence of alcohol during the time of the robbery attempt.

The police formed special teams immediately after the robbery was reported. They noted that the gang, before the Nemilicherry incident, had stopped another man, a techie returning home after work on his two-wheeler, and attacked him before robbing his vehicle, cash and phone. The victim, Ashok Kumar, was injured in the assault and lodged a complaint at the Patabhiram police station.

The police, during the investigation, found that the gang had indulged in similar crimes on the long stretch of Outer Ring Road connecting Vandalur and Minjur on Thursday night. They attacked five persons at various spots besides killingVenkatesan.