COIMBATORE: City police have arrested three persons so far in connection with the major daylight robbery that happened on September 4, when a gang robbed Rs 1.06 crore from a businessman travelling from Hyderabad. A senior police official said two different gangs from Pune and Bengaluru were jointly involved and were randomly targeting people carrying valuables on public transport.
The victim, Dhamam Rangasamy (65), a jewellery trader from Hyderabad who frequently visits Coimbatore for business, alighted from an omni bus at Lakshmi Mills Junction in the city on Friday (September 4) morning.
He was walking towards another vehicle to head to Oppanakkara Street for a jewellery deal when a gang in a car approached him, engaged him in conversation, overpowered him and snatched his bag containing cash and valuables. The victim filed a complaint at the Race Course Police Station. Police immediately formed four special teams, tracked the vehicle using CCTV footage, intercepted the suspects at the Ulundurpet toll plaza and have arrested three suspects so far, including Mukesh Kumar (26) and Ramesh Kumar (25).
A senior police official said three suspects have been arrested and they are on the lookout for four more suspects, including two who have fled to Rajasthan with the stolen cash and valuables. He said it was a heist executed by two different gangs in collusion without using any weapons. The suspects are natives of Rajasthan and were working in interior, grill and carpentry work.
They choose victims randomly, and after confirming that they travel carrying valuables, they follow them and execute the heist, he added. Likewise, Dhamam in this case was chosen since he used to travel by buses every time to reach Coimbatore for jewellery business carrying cash. They fixed the target and continued to follow him. However, he never stepped out of the bus until he reached Coimbatore. At Lakshmi Mills Junction, when he came out, they executed the plan, the official added.
"The gang consists of around eight people, most of them natives of Rajasthan but residing in Pune and Bengaluru. A few had already worked in Salem district a few years back and knew that many people come to Coimbatore for the jewellery business," the police official said.
On the day of the incident, both gangs waited in two cars, one from Maharashtra and another from Bengaluru, fitted with fake number plates. After robbing the businessman, they escaped from the city, and before reaching Ulundurpet, two of them got down from one car with the cash and valuables, possibly to safeguard it, this was not known to those in the other car, he said.
When both gangs met up later, they had a heated argument over the duo who got down with the valuables, and in the ensuing scuffle, the windshield of one of the cars was damaged, he added. They then ditched the cars and hired another vehicle with the help of their friend from Rajasthan, who was staying in Tiruppur. By the time, a few had split away from the entire group. The remaining were traced and caught with the support of Ulundurpet police. Efforts are under way to arrest the remaining persons involved and to retrieve the money and valuables, the senior police official said.
The people who are carrying valuables in public transport facilities must be aware of such issues. They should keep vigil and ensure safekeeping until the valuables reach the destination safely, he added.