A gang of robbers struck at a commercial complex on Pantheon Road, Egmore, late on Friday. Police said that as many as 14 shops were looted to a tune of around ₹30 lakh.
No CCTVs
The complex, called ‘Treasure Island’, is among the oldest in the city with 40 shops of which only 20 are open for business now.
The complex has neither a watchman nor a Closed Circuit Television Camera system installed on its premises or its outer periphery.
The police suspect that the robbery might be the handiwork of insiders who know the condition of the shops.
The robbers broke locks around the iron rolling shutter on the main gate of the building and targetted the mobile show rooms.
Kannan, the owner of one mobile showroom, said, “I lost everything. Nearly 60 Android mobile phones, and four pieces of the recently-launched, expensive iPhone Red were stolen, apart from cash and a laptop. Totally, goods worth over ₹20 lakh were stolen.”
The robbers also took cash and electronic gadgets kept in a health garment shop.
Other shops that were burgled include a courier service and a real estate office. S. Kalim, a curtain merchant, said, “The miscreants opened my steal bureau using an iron crowbar and made away with ₹12,000 and a mobile phone.” They did not spare even the ₹150 kept in the drawer of a photocopy shop.
The Egmore police rushed to the spot and conducted an investigation.
The Inspector of Police, Egmore, said: “We have collected fingerprint samples from here and are conducting an investigation. We have some footage recorded from the opposite building. Soon, we will zero in on the accused.”
