Cabbie chases, nabs duo fleeing with his car

Undaunted by a gang that attacked him and took his car away, a taxi driver enlisted the help of a two-wheeler rider to chase and nab two of the three accused at Kodungaiyur. Hunt is on for the third member of a gang of youngsters, whom the police say were under the influence of drugs at the time of the incident on Friday.

The trio booked the taxi from Perambur. Police said they were reportedly heading for a meeting with a financier at Kodungaiyur. However, while on the way, they kept on changing the directions that the driver, Sivaraja of Tiruvallur, was to take. This went on for some time.

Irked over this, the driver finally told them that he was getting delayed for his next ride because of them. This led to an argument between him and the passengers. The three men then turned physical and attacked Sivaraja, pushed him out of the car and went away with the vehicle.

Not letting them escape easily, Sivaraja managed to flag down a man on a two-wheeler who came by immediately afterwards. Together, they followed the car as it proceeded to Kodungaiyur. Meanwhile, in an unexpected twist for the gang, the car collided with a bike at Seetha Raman Nagar, forcing them to stop.

When they noticed Sivaraja reaching there on a bike, the trio immediately took to their heels. However, the driver continued to chase them. By then, he got the support from the public who helped him pursue and nab two of the three men. They were handed over to the police, who recovered Rs 50,000 cash from their possession.

According to police, one of the arrested persons, Vikram (27) of Triplicane, is a murder accused in a case pending before Mylapore police station, while the other has been identified as his friend Karthik. A hunt has been launched for the third person, Gopi, who managed to escape from the spot.

Vikram reportedly told Karthik that he knew a financier who would arrange Rs 5 lakh as loan if Rs 25,000 was paid to him. Based on this, Karthik gave him Rs 50,000 and went along with his friend to meet the financier. That was when the incident took place, said sources in the Police Department after a preliminary inquiry. Further investigation is on.