CHENNAI: A 33-year-old man was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly scribbling an offer to arrange the killing of a Vyasarpadi rowdy on the seat of an MTC electric bus, and listing his rival’s name as the person to contact, along with a mobile number. He was sent for remand.
According to the MKB Nagar police, the accused, Zakir Hussain of Vyasarpadi, has 10 criminal cases against him. The message, “Want to kill a rowdy in Vyasarpadi? Contact me,” accompanied by a sketch of a machete, was found on a seat in a route 2B bus operating between Kodungaiyur and Anna Square. A photograph of it went viral on social media, and police registered a case.
The police initially tried to trace the person who wrote the message using the number provided, but found that it was incorrect. Further inquiries revealed that the name scribbled in the message was Vicky, a Vyasarpadi resident with whom Hussain had a longstanding rivalry. Police found that Hussain had written the wrong number because he was drunk at the time. They then examined the bus’s CCTV footage and identified Hussain.
During questioning, Hussain allegedly told the police that he had scribbled it in an inebriated condition, as he suspected Vicky of taking away a stolen mobile phone.