Couple Back from Temple Finds Thief Inside home, Traps Him

A burglar who struck at a house at Milk Colony in Madhavaram on Friday morning and bundled valuables, including 34 sovereigns of gold jewels, ran out of luck at the last minute as residents of the house returned before he could leave with the loot.

On seeing the doors of his house forced open Lakshmanan (48) sensed the presence of a burglar. But he did not panic and, together with his wife, managed to trap the burglar inside by locking the doors from outside. They then alerted the police.

Police sources said Lakshmanan, a former employee of ITC, had gone with his wife to a temple early morning as it was the auspicious day of Thaipusam.

The burglar, identified as Baskaran, of southern Nagercoil, had been surveying the area for the last few weeks and had targeted Lakshmanan’s house on finding it locked. Upon entering the house, he opened the cupboards and took out nearly 34 sovereign of gold jewels. Besides this, he packed various valuables into bundles, police sources said.

“When the family returned around 9 am, they noticed that the lock of the front door was broken. Lakshmanan also sensed the presence of someone inside the house. He silently walked inside and found a man busy packing things. On seeing Lakshmanan, the burglar wielded a knife to threaten him.

But Lakshmanan managed to pushed him down and rushed out of the house,” said a senior police officer.

Lakshmanan soon locked the door on the outside and raised an alarm. The neighbours also gathered in front of the house. As the house had no other doors, Baskaran was trapped inside the house.

They then alerted the police control room and a team from Milk Colony police station took custody of Baskaran.  “When we cross-checked his records, we found that he was wanted in several other cases. He had apparently thought that the family members would not return so soon. We are probing other thefts committed by him in the city,” said a police officer.