A local gangster, who was in police custody for the investigation of a murder reported in Coimbatore in February, was shot in his leg by the police, allegedly after he opened fire at police personnel when he was taken to a neighbourhood near the city for the recovery of a pistol, on Tuesday morning.
M. Sanjay Raja, 31, of Sivanandapuram in Coimbatore, was shot in his left leg by a sub-inspector (SI) after he allegedly fired two rounds at the police team. Raja was hit on his left knee and was admitted to the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital.
According to the police, Raja and four others murdered R. Sathyapandi (31) of Arapalayam in Madurai, a murder case accused, who worked for a realtor in Coimbatore, after chasing him on the Siddhapudur-Nava India Road in Coimbatore on February 12. The gang hacked at and then shot Sathyapandi as he ran for his life and tried to seek shelter at a house. Sathyapandi was one of the accused in the murder of Hindu Munnani supporter C. Biju, 31, in Ram Nagar in Coimbatore on September 13, 2020.
The police said that Raja surrendered before a court at Egmore in Chennai last week, after which the Coimbatore Race Course police got him in custody for five days. Raja’s four accomplices, namely Kaja Hussain of Theethipalayam, Sanjay Kumar of Selvapuram North Housing Unit, U. Zulfiqarkhan of the Coimbatore city North Housing Unit and I. Alwin of Nagercoil in Kanniyakumari district, had also surrendered before a court. The police later arrested two-wheeler mechanic Manikandan of Theethipalayam on charges of hiding the weapons in his workshop.
G. Chandeesh, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Coimbatore North, visiting the site of the incident | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
During the interrogation, Raja told the police that he left for Chennai on a motorcycle after the murder. A pistol he carried was kept under the seat of the motorcycle which was parked in a parking yard in Chennai. On Saturday, Raja was taken to Chennai where the police recovered the pistol and the motorcycle.
According to the police, Raja had confessed to having procured two pistols from Bihar in 2018. As the police continued to question him about the second pistol, Raja on Monday, told the investigators that it was hidden in a foothill near Karattumedu in Coimbatore. A police team comprising inspector Krishnaveni, SIs Chandramoorthy, Chandrasekar, special SI Anandakumar and Grade I constable Sridhar took him to the spot around 6.30 a.m. on Tuesday to recover the pistol.
The police said that Raja opened fire at Ms. Krishnaveni after taking out the pistol he had hidden. As Ms. Krishnaveni hid herself behind a tree, Raja fired a second round at the officer. SI Chandrasekar then shot Raja on his left leg after which the latter dropped the pistol, the police said.
City Police Commissioner V. Balakrishnan said no police officer was injured in the firing by Raja. G. Chandeesh, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Coimbatore North, visited the place of the firing.
