Four persons robbed ₹30 lakh from a labourer at knifepoint near Nanguneri on Wednesday night even as the huge sum was apparently being taken to bribe the voters.
Police said labourer Vaanumamalai, 35, of Marukaalkurichi near Nanguneri in the district was returning home on his bike on Wednesday night. Even as he was crossing Pattarpuram intersection near Nanguneri Multiproduct Special Economic Zone, four persons in two bikes intercepted him. After forcibly stopping him, they took ₹30 lakh from Vaanumamalai at knifepoint and escaped.
Based on the complaint from Vaanumamalai, the Nanguneri police registered a case.
Police suspect that Vaanumamalai might have been handpicked by a political party to give money to bribe voters in his village. When the police and the flying squad grilled Vaanumamalai in this connection, he told them repeatedly that he had borrowed the money from a moneylender to repay his debts.
Unsatisfied with the reply, the police are quizzing him further and are on the lookout for four, including one Selvakumar from the same area, in connection with this robbery.
“The armed gang, after coming to know about the cash being taken by the labourer, had targeted Vaanumamalai. If the gang is nabbed, the reason behind the labourer taking the hefty sum will come to light,” a police officer here said.
