Panchaloha idol seized in Porur

Acting on a tip off, the police personnel intercepted the car in which the gang was travelling and seized the idol, said a statement by the police.

The nine-member police team, described as high court committee in an official communication released by idol wing, had travelled by three separate auto rickshaws rounded up the gang members waiting in a car. The police team, comprising IG Pon Manickavel, arrested the gang members in front of nearly 100 people, including a bank official, on Monday around 6.30 pm.

The police team recovered a 1.75-foot-tall Amman idol weighing nearly 20 kg from the car (TN 09 BP 3040) and arrested the four occupants of the vehicle.  

After interrogating the gang members, the police said that the gang was planning to sell the idol for Rs 50 lakh. There were tell-tale signs that the idol was being worshipped in a temple till very recently, the police statement noted.

Police suspect that the Amman idol was stolen from a temple in Tiruvallur district a few days back.

Following the arrest of the four suspects, the idol wing rewarded three auto rickshaw drivers with Rs 1,500 each for helping to nab the accused by taking the police team to the spot on time.