Two persons, including a history-sheeter, A. Udaya alias Udayakumar (23), were hacked to death at Sourashtrapuram in Vandiyur here on Saturday late night.
The identity of the other deceased person was yet to be established, the police said.
Rivalry among ganja peddlers is suspected to be the motive behind the double murder.
The police said that an armed gang, led by Udaya, had gone to a silver vessels manufacturing unit, located on the Northern Bank of the Vaigai river at around 11.30 p.m. After hurling country-made bombs, which the police said did not explode, they started attacking the workers inside the workshop.
The police said that Udaya had targeted R. Murugan, owner of the workshop, to take revenge on his (Murugan’s) brother, R. Senthilpandi, who had allegedly tipped off the police about the ganja peddling by Udaya’s gang.
However, Udaya’s gang was taken by surprise by Murugan’s supporters — who were also armed inside the tin-sheet-roofed workshop — started retaliating. In a bloody armed clash, two persons were killed on the spot and three others were injured. The injured, identified as Manikandan, Arun and Sabari, have been admitted to the Government Rajaji hospital here.
Based on the suspected tip off by Senthilpandi, the Karuppayoorani police had seized 26 kg of ganja and arrested four persons of Udaya’s gang on November 9, 2013. The police were on the lookout for Udaya and eight others in this connection.
Within three days, Udaya’s gang allegedly retaliated by hacking Senthilpandi at Vandiyur. However, Senthilpandi survived the brutal attack after being treated at a private hospital. The Superintendent of Police, V. Balakrishnan, inspected the scene of crime.
