Tirupati: The Palamaner police on Wednesday arrested a six-member inter-state gang involved in several house breakings and bank robberies across Andhra Pradesh and the neighbouring states, near the Palamaner-Gangavaram flyover on Wednesday morning.
Addressing the media here, Chittoor district Superintendent of Police (SP) Y. Rishanth Reddy said, based on a tip-off, Punganur SI Sukumar and his team apprehended the gang members and recovered stolen gold jewellery worth around Rs 30 lakhs and two cars used in the robberies.
He said several cases were pending against the accused in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. “They would target locked houses and banks at night, break open safe locks, and decamp with cash and valuables,” the SP added.
The arrested have been identified as S. Ramesh,51, the leader of a gang with over 50 cases pending in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala; R. Govindaraju,35 with over 20 cases in various states, S. Srinivasulu, 37 with about 25 cases, C. Gaviyappa,41 with over 20 cases, B.K. Ganesh, 38, with around 15 cases, and Aswat Narayana, 34 with around 15 cases.
As per the investigation, Ramesh and Srinivas would sell the stolen gold to private finance and gold companies to generate funds after committing the robberies. Multiple police teams were formed under the supervision of DSP N. Sudhakar Reddy to investigate the night-time thefts reported in the Punganur, Sadum, Gangavaram, and Ramakuppam areas of the district.
SP Rishanth Reddy appreciated the efforts of the Punganur police for nabbing the notorious gang and recovering stolen property and announced rewards to police teams.
