CHENNAI: A gang of robbers barged into a Hyundai car yard at Manapakkam here in the wee hours of Wednesday and drove away in seven of the automaker’s mid-range Creta model vehicles.
The keys left on the car door and the petrol filled in the tanks — meant to enable quicker shifting of the cars to showrooms — came in handy for the robbers, who overpowered sole security guard, Manoharan (54), who had been guarding 63 brand-new cars.
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However, with the police on their tail, the gang was forced to abandon five of the cars, priced between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 17 lakh, at Gangai Amman Koil Street in Valasaravakkam.
The abandoned cars were spotted by the police about three hours later. A search was on for the remaining two cars and police sources said they have identified a key suspect.
“Around 4 am, they (the robbers) had apparently pelted stones on the gate of the yard, prompting the security guard to open the gate. The gang then quickly barged into the yard and overpowered Manoharan,” said an investigating officer.
The yard, which had earlier been functioning at Porur, was relocated just two days ago. Some of the abandoned cars were found with fake number plates and inquiries revealed that the plates had been purchased from a shop at Valasaravakkam on Tuesday.
Police said the robbers had parked the cars at Gangai Amman Koil Street and were attempting to fix the fake number plates on them when a police patrol prompted them to flee.
