Police use gang members to trap bike-lifting outfit

An investigation into the increased number of bike-lifting cases in Anna Nagar police limits helped cops foil a notorious gang’s plan to eliminate a rival gang member and also crack down on bike-lifting cases. A special team headed by Deputy Commissioner Joshi Nirmal Kumar arrested a rowdy and murder-accused named Karuna alias Karunakaran (24) and four of his accomplices near the Toll Plaza on Chennai bypass on Sunday. 

Members of the special police team were waiting on a two wheeler after receiving a tip-off that two men had set out from Acharapakkam to murder a gangster called Bunk Balu at ICF. 

The police team picked up Karunakaran and his close associate Ponmani (24) when they arrived on a two wheeler near Toll Plaza. Upon interrogating the accused, the police found out that Karunakaran and Ponmani were already accused in two murder cases and were on their way to eliminate Bunk Balu. 

The police then devised a plan to arrest the remaining gang members and made Karuna call up his other associates, asking them to meet up at ICF to carry out their hit. Without realising the police’s plan, two of his associates Janakiraman (24) and Arumugham reached ICF armed with weapons and were picked up by the police. The police later trapped the fifth accused Sasikumar (35) as well. 

According to the officers, the same five-member gang had been involved in frequent bike thefts from areas like Anna Nagar, Tirumangalam, ICF, JJ Nagar and Villivakkam. “They used to lift two wheelers and used them for chain snatching. 

This gang has confessed to have carried out several such snatching and robbery cases across the city. We have already recovered 5 two wheelers from them,” a police official said. 

Police said the same gang were involved in the murder of Sreedharan, a rival gang leader in 2012 and they had murdered Vinod, a rival group member at Villivakkam in 2014. 

Police had also seized mobile phones and large knives from the gang. All the accused were later produced before the magistrate court and were remanded to judicial custody.