COIMBATORE: A gang waylaid a four-member
Kerala police
team at Kaniyur toll plaza in Coimbatore district of
Tamil Nadu on Saturday night and abducted a 41-year-old
money lender
whom the police team had arrested from Chennai.
The incident happened when the police team was going to Kerala after arresting P Maharajan, 41, from Virugambakkam in Chennai for allegedly collecting huge interests from some people. He was arrested under a few sections of the Kerala Money Lenders Act and Kerala Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act.
The Palluruthy police in Ernakulam district in Kerala registered a case against Maharajan a few months ago. They got information that Maharajan was staying at Virugambakkam in Chennai. A special team led by sub-inspector Anish Kumar from the Palluruthy police station secured Maharajan from Virugambakkam on Saturday morning. The police secured his two accomplices too.
Later, the police team left for Ernakulam in a car with Maharajan and his two accomplices. The police team let off the accomplices around 40km away from Sriperumpudur.
Around 11.30pm, when the car reached near a toll plaza at Kaniyur on the Salem -Coimbatore National Highway, four cars waylaid the police vehicle. More than 15 people came out of the vehicles. The men abducted Maharajan from the police custody and escaped.
The police informed the incident to their higher officials over phone. Based on their senior officials’ advice, the police team lodged a complaint with Karumathampatti police here. The Karumathampatti police registered a case.
A team from the Coimbatore rural police were gathering CCTV footage from the toll plaza and other commercial establishments in the area.
Further investigations were on.