The Esplanade police on Saturday busted four men who posed as police officers on electoral duty and stole Rs. 30.40 lakh from agents of a steel firm here on March 20. A hunt is on for the key suspect who is suspected to be in possession of the larger portion of the booty.
Police sources identified the arrested as Arumugam (33) who owns a fitness centre in Triplicane, his helper, Murali (25), Kishore (50), a junior artiste from Teynampet, and Mani (23) who runs a fruit stall in Teynampet. The men, part of a gang, posed as police personnel, and intercepted Kasiram and Govindaraj at Sembudoss Street in Parrys Corner. They then made them into get into an MUV and drove around. After sending the agents away on the pretext of buying beverages, the suspects stole the money.
An Esplanade police team apprehended the four men by tracking down the MUV’s registration details, which one of the victims noted down. Cash totalling Rs. 2 lakh was seized. Apart from the four men, two others have been detained and are being questioned. Investigators have launched a hunt for Feroz from Manadi, who is believed to be the key conspirator.