Fake NIA raid: BJP man, five others surrender

CHENNAI: A week after a trader at Burma Bazaar was robbed of Rs 20 lakh by persons posing as National Investigation Agency (NIA) officers apparently inquiring suspects involved in Coimbatore blasts, six persons, including a State BJP functionary and two women, surrendered in a city court on Monday.

Those surrendered were identified as Vengai Amaran alias Velu, a BJP functionary from Royapuram, and his associates, Pushparaj, Karthik, Catherine, Kala and Baskar. All six of them surrendered before a magistrate in George Town court complex, a senior police officer said.

On December 12, Velu and his associates posed as NIA officers and robbed Rs 20 lakh from a Burma Bazaar trader. According to police sources, the victim, Mohammed Abdullah (36) of Ramanathapuram district, was living in a rented house at Malayappan Street in Mannadi and was running mobile phone shops in Burma Bazaar area.

When Abdullah was alone at home, three persons dressed impeccably knocked on the door and claimed to be from NIA and searched the house. After seizing Rs 10 lakh cash in the house, they took Abdullah to his shop in Burma Bazaar and seized Rs 10 lakh more from there.

The ‘officers’ told the shopkeeper to submit the proper documents and take back the cash. When Abdullah and his associates went to the NIA office in Chennai, they were informed that no such raid was conducted by their officers. That is when the victims realised that they were duped.

Based on a complaint by Abdullah, Muthialpet police registered a case and were investigating. As city police were close to nabbing the suspects, six persons surrendered at court on Monday.