Diamond robbery gang busted in 12 hours; 4 held in Thoothukudi
Officials said that they tracked the suspects’ vehicle route for hours on CCTV cameras, and alerted their counterparts in Thoothukudi, while a special team from Chennai was on their trail.
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CHENNAI: Within 12 hours of the incident, Chennai police, in coordination with the Thoothukudi police, busted a four-member gang, who fled the city after tying up a diamond and antique jewellery dealer in a hotel room in Vadapalani. They had posed as prospective buyers and escaped with diamonds worth several lakhs.
Officials said that they tracked the suspects’ vehicle route for hours on CCTV cameras, and alerted their counterparts in Thoothukudi, while a special team from Chennai was on their trail.
The victim, Chandrashekar (69), a resident of Anna Nagar, was approached by two men on Sunday afternoon at his residence. They expressed interest in buying an antique diamond from him. A meeting was set up at a private hotel in Vadapalani where the buyers were supposed to meet him.
Chandrashekar and one of his friends entered the room where the discussions were happening. The suspects took the friend outside the room under the guise of discussing advance payment, leaving the elderly jeweller alone. When he man was alone in the room, the ‘buyers’ overpowered him, tied him to a chair and fled with the diamonds.
Chandrashekar’s daughter, who was waiting outside the hotel, went to his room as he did not return her calls and found him tied up. Vadapalani police were alerted, after which special teams were formed to trace the suspects.
On learning from the suspects about the role of people from Sivakasi, a special team from Chennai was sent there while another team was co-ordinating with Thoothukudi police to intercept their vehicle. At the Pandiyapuram checkpost, a team intercepted the vehicle and arrested John Lloyd (34) of Iyyappanthangal, S Vijay (24) of Valasaravakkam, R Ratheesh (28) of Thiruverkadu, and G Arun Pandiarajan (32) of Paramakudi.
Police recovered the stolen diamond and the vehicle. Investigations have revealed that the suspects were in the used car business. Police said that they would be brought to the city after which they will be remanded to judicial custody.
