Auto driver hacked to death in Kancheepuram

CHENNAI: An auto driver was brutally hacked to death by a five-member gang in a forest area near Maduranthakam in the wee hours of Thursday. The police suspect the murder was pre-planned and linked to previous enmity.

The deceased was identified as Suresh Kumar (38), a resident of Paruthikollai village near Uthiramerur in Kancheepuram, who was working as an auto driver. Police said Suresh Kumar was waiting for passengers near the Uthiramerur bus stand when five men who had arrived from Chennai on a government bus approached him seeking a ride to Pappanallur village near Maduranthakam. The group told him they needed to visit their sister's house.

Suresh Kumar initially refused to take all five men in a single auto. However, the group persuaded him by offering additional fare, following which he agreed to the trip. While travelling through a forest stretch near Pappanallur, the gang suddenly asked the driver to stop the vehicle. As soon as the auto came to a halt, the men pulled out hidden weapons, including knives and sickles, and attacked him.

Police said Suresh Kumar attempted to escape and ran into the nearby forest area. The gang chased him, hacked him to death, and fled the spot.

Meanwhile, the passersby noticed an auto parked suspiciously in the forest area for a long time. When they went closer, they found bloodstains near the vehicle and later found the driver's body in the nearby forest area.

On information, the Maduranthakam police rushed to the spot, recovered the body and sent it to the Chengalpattu Government Hospital for post-mortem examination. A case has been registered, and an investigation is under way.

Preliminary inquiries indicate that the murder was planned and may have been carried out due to prior enmity. Police have formed three special teams to trace and arrest the five suspects.