CHENNAI: A 28-year-old man, allegedly part of an interstate gang from Haryana, was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the theft of `9 lakh from an ICICI Bank ATM near Sriperumbudur on August 25. Police said another team from the same gang allegedly stole around `11 lakh from an Axis Bank ATM at Gummidipoondi two days later.
The arrested man, O Pawan Kumar, a native of Uttar Pradesh, was allegedly part of the group that carried out the Sriperumbudur heist. Police said the gang, which operated out of Haryana’s Nuh district, had split into two teams to carry out the two ATM thefts.
The arrest came after the Tambaram police traced the vehicle allegedly used in the Sriperumbudur heist to Telangana. Acting on further leads and information received from their sources, a special team travelled to Haryana in search of the suspects. The investigation eventually led the police to Jaipur, where Kumar was arrested.
Kumar had, meanwhile, been arrested by the Jaipur police in connection with another case registered at the Vaishali Nagar police station in Rajasthan. After learning of his arrest, the Tambaram police team reached Jaipur and subsequently secured his custody in the Sriperumbudur case. During interrogation, Kumar allegedly told the police that he and four others had travelled to the Sriperumbudur area to carry out the ATM heist. The four others remain at large.
In both cases, the suspects allegedly covered the CCTV cameras and used welding equipment to cut open the cash compartments. In the Gummidipoondi incident, which took place in the early hours of August 27, the suspects allegedly made away with around `11 lakh from the Axis Bank ATM. They also attempted to break open an Indian Overseas Bank ATM in an adjoining building but failed.
Police sources said the same gang was also involved in an ATM theft in Tiruvannamalai in 2023 and had allegedly carried out cattle thefts in North India. The Gummidipoondi case is being investigated separately by the SIPCOT police. Tiruvallur district police have formed special teams to trace and arrest those involved in the theft.