Three teenagers were arrested on Monday for their involvement in a series of burglaries of temples in the northern neighbourhood of the city. The trio were sent to the government juvenile home in Ayanavaram later in the day. They were involved in several cases of breaking open hundis and stealing money.
Police said that the trio, all of them aged 16, were natives of Kasimedu. They were childhood friends and school drop-outs. Over the course of two years, the trio broke open hundis in temples in areas such as Tondiarpet, Washermenpet, Royapuram, MKB Nagar, Vysarpadi, Perambur, Tiruvottiyur and Broadway. “The trio have been involved in more than a hundred hundi break cases in north Chennai,” said a police officer of Kasimedu police.
During the day, the trio would observe temples in the locality and take note of the number of guards present, the rush and the temple’s likely income. After sunset, they would break in and steal the money. On Monday, a trap was laid by a special police team led by Kasimedu police inspector (Law & Order), John Sundar. A police team disguised as devotees spread information among devotees that the Murugan temple in Kasimedu got a lot of money through contributions. As the word spread, the trio decided to break into the temple after sunset. A police team was waiting inside and nabbed the trio.
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