The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Five youths’ courage rewarded

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Wednesday, Aug 20, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Five youths’ courage rewarded

Special Correspondent

TAMBARAM: Five youths who caught a pickpocket and recovered Rs.50,000 were rewarded on Tuesday by the police.

C. Dhandapani of Porur, employed in a textile firm, was travelling in a Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus (route M 54) from Poonamallee to Saidapet with Rs.50,000 in cash in his pant pocket. While he was about to get down at a bus stop near Manapakkam, he realised that the cash was missing.

As the bus came to a halt, he raised an alarm and noticing the commotion, an alert group of five youths, blocked both the entrances of the bus.

One of them walked across to the other side of bus to keep a watch on the windows. Just as commuters and the youth were trying to ensure that none left the vehicle, a man tried to walk away.

When the youths confronted him, the man walked back to the bus and claimed that the wallet with the cash intact was recovered from the steps of the bus.

He then tried to escape but the youths overpowered him, put him in the bus and asked the driver to take the bus to the Nandambakkam police station.

When the bus started, the man tried to jump out of the bus and escape, but was pulled back into the vehicle by the youths .

They handed over the pickpocket, K. Arumugham (31), to the personnel at police station.

The youths have been identified as A. Poovarasan and M. Raman, both 18 years old and Plus One students, D. Charles and S. William Shenbagaraj, both 22 years old and students of Nandanam Arts College and G.Vasantha Kumar, 19, who has completed Plus Two

Briefing reporters on Tuesday, S.R. Jangid, Chennai Suburban Police Commissioner, said Arumugham was reported to have committed the crime with an accomplice who had used a sharp instrument to cut the pant of Mr. Dhandapani.

Lauding the presence of mind of the youths, Mr. Jangid gave cash awards to each of them. Arumugham was involved in crime cases in Perambur, Elephant Gate, Triplicane and Tirumangalam police limits, he added.

Control room number

Mr. Jangid said a separate telephone number for control room - 100 for police emergency and 103 - for traffic were commissioned. Most telephone exchanges in St. Thomas Mount, Madhavaram and Ambattur districts were linked to these new numbers, while some others were even now linked to Egmore.

Mr. Jangid said they had also commissioned a mobile phone, 96000 96400, to which residents of the three police districts could call or send text messages (SMS) about problems relating to law and order, crime and traffic. They could also send e-mail to copmount@hotmail.com.

V. Varadharaju, Deputy Commissioner of Police, St. Thomas Mount, was present.

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