Friday, October 4, 2019

Key suspect detained in Tiruchi jewellery heist

Five others picked up in Pudukottai

04/10/2019, R. RAJARAM,TIRUCHI

Police teams continue to sift through footage from CCTV cameras. M. Srinath

A day after the sensational heist at the Lalithaa Jewellery in Tiruchi, the police detained one of the suspects in Tiruvarur district on Thursday evening.

According to police sources, the suspect, identified as Manikandan, was detained during vehicle checks by a police team. He was allegedly in possession of some jewellery, the barcode of which is said to have matched those stolen from the showroom on Wednesday. An accomplice of Manikandan managed to escape from the spot, the police said.

Senior police officers, however, said the suspect was being interrogated to establish if he was a member of the gang that broke into the showroom wearing masks.

Five nabbed

Late on Wednesday, the police picked up five persons hailing from Jharkhand, who were staying at a lodge in Pudukottai, for questioning, to ascertain if they had any role in the heist.

The five men were brought to Tiruchi and subjected to intensive questioning by the police.

Another man, who was staying with them, allegedly jumped out on seeing the police team and sustained an injury on his head, and is undergoing treatment in Pudukottai.

The police are guarding him.

The men claimed that they had come to Pudukottai a few days ago to sell clothing.

The police said that while their role in the case was yet to be established, they were suspected to have committed other offences, using a similar modus operandi.

Seven special teams are probing the case. The teams also continued to sift through footage from CCTV cameras installed in the outlet and its vicinity.

Police baffled

The police are baffled as to how the four security guards, deployed at the outlet’s entrance, failed to hear the sound of a large hole being drilled by the burglars in the wall of the building, and how they decamped with the booty after remaining inside for two full hours. The culprits had drilled the hole close to the spot where the outlet’s manager usually sits, to gain quick and immediate access to the chain of showcases, where jewellery was placed in rows.

The culprits sprinkled chilli powder at the spot, apparently believing that this would prevent police detective dogs following their scents. A few empty packets of chilli powder were found near the crime scene.

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