Gang that stole liquor bottles from lorry arrested

A special team of the Tiruchi Rural police has arrested a four-member gang that was involved in stealing boxes containing liquor bottles that were being transported in a lorry through Tiruchi district recently.

The lorry was transporting liquor bottles packed in boxes from a private distillery company at Kallakottai in Pudukottai district and proceeding towards Namakkal on the night of May 3.

The lorry driver parked the vehicle in the early hours at Musiri Kaikatti to have a cup of tea in a bakery. Those in the shop raised an alarm that a person was lifting boxes from the lorry. The person jumped from the lorry and fled the spot in a car. 

The lorry driver, Kanakaraj, alerted a sub-inspector who was conducting vehicle checks near the Musiri Government Hospital, a police press release said. Two police constables — Kandasamy and Prakash — who were on duty at the spot chased the car on a two-wheeler to a distance of 30 km and intercepted the vehicle at Thuraiyur.

Five persons on board the car escaped from the vehicle. One of them later identified as Ramesh, 38, of Usilampatti in Madurai district, suffered a fracture in the left leg while trying to escape by jumping into a channel nearby. He was admitted to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital in Tiruchi as in-patient. Subsequently, an order to remand him in judicial custody was passed by the Musiri judicial magistrate court.

While checking the car, the police found seven boxes containing 336 liquor bottles inside. Five boxes were intact and the remaining two were found broken open. During interrogation, Ramesh disclosed that when the lorry was proceeding slowly on the bridge at Bikshandarkoil near Tiruchi his associate Ranjith travelling in the car managed to board the lorry. Ramesh said that he had accompanied Muthuveeran, Kalimuthu and Vijayan.

A case was registered at the Musiri police station against Ramesh and four others on May 4 on a complaint from the lorry driver Kanagaraj. A special team, which was on the look out of the other culprits held Vijayan, Muthuveeran and Kalimuthu near the Musiri old bus stand on Wednesday. 

During inquiry, the three confessed to having stolen liquor bottles from the lorry. The team is on the lookout for another accused. The four arrested persons were earlier involved in the similar modus operandi of stealing articles from lorries besides being involved in robbery in other districts, the release added. The two constables who acted swiftly leading to the arrest of the accused were given appreciation certificates and cash awards by the Tiruchi Superintendent of Police, S. Selvanagarathinam.