CHENNAI: Unidentified men posing as Income Tax (I-T) officials conned a middle-aged woman and got away with her money and jewellery, here on Wednesday.
According to sources, around 11.30 am on Wednesday, three well-attired men approached Sarala (41), wife of Srinivasan, a former Councillor, at her residence in Thiruvalluvar Nagar, Tiruvanmyur.
After introducing themselves as I-T officials, the trio ‘searched’ the entire house and took away ` 20,000 and nine sovereigns of gold from the locker. They left the house after informing Sarala that the ‘seized’ items will be returned once the source of income was produced to them at the IT Office at Nungambakkam.
Sarala then informed her husband Srinivasan who was away at work about the incident. Srinivasan rushed to Nungambakkam only to realise that they were conned.
Sarala, who is into money-lending business in the neighbourhood, lodged a complaint with the Tiruvanmiyur Police who registered a case. “It appears to be the handiwork of one of her clients who knew that the family had liquid cash,” an officer privy to the investigation said.
Job Racket Busted
The police have invoked Goondas Act on a person arrested for allegedly running a job racket and cheating unemployed youth by promising them government jobs.
The accused R Kandasamy of Nandanam was arrested following a complaint by one of his victims S Muthupandi. According to the police, the suspect, who was dismissed from his job as an office assistant at the Secretariat complex, had run a racket which involved siphoning off nearly `90 lakh from 68 people.
The accused had a previous history of cheating people. In 2007, he conned two people into giving him money in exchange for jobs at the Secretariat, which resulted in his dismissal.
Under the instructions of the city Police Commissioner S George, Kandasamy was booked and arrested under the Goondas Act, and has been lodged in Puzhal prison.
Cops Trace Teens
Two teenagers who had skipped their school examinations and deserted their homes in Tirunelveli district were picked up by the city police near Pallavaram.
According to police, the duo, Vijayan (17) and Praveen Raj (16) were loitering around the Pallavaram bus stop when a patrol team intercepted them. Interrogation revealed that the teens from Mayamankurichi village had fled from their homes fearing their parents, as they had skipped school examinations.
After verifying with their counterparts in Alangulam Panchayat, Pallavaram police personnel informed the boys’ parents of the situation, and later, made arrangements for them to be reunited.
Bomb Hoax
A hoax call to the police control room informing about bombs placed in the nation’s capital, which was initially believed to have emerged from Egmore, has been traced back to Uthamapalayam in Theni district.
The caller has been identified as a child attempting to fool police officials. Police have warned the kid.