CHENNAI: A history-sheeter was gagged to death near Avadi Tank Factory on Friday evening.
The deceased has been identified as Manikandan (28), a resident of Kollumedu near Avadi. He was a listed history-sheeter at the Avadi Tank Factory police station and had several criminal cases pending against him.
According to police sources, Manikandan had a long-standing enmity with Veera (23) from Kovil Pathagai in Avadi. The rivalry is said to have stemmed from the earlier murder of two persons, who were reportedly associates of Veera.
On Friday evening, Manikandan and Veera came face to face at Kovil Pathagai, where an argument broke out and soon escalated into a physical confrontation. During the clash, Veera allegedly struck Manikandan in the face, causing him to fall to the ground. Police sources said the suspect then gagged Manikandan to death by pressing his leg on his neck, before fleeing the scene.
The public alerted the police after noticing Manikandan lying in a pool of blood. The personnel from the Avadi Tank Factory police station sent the body to KMC Hospital for postmortem and are searching for the suspect.