Man targets wedding photographers’ costly cameras, nabbed at last

On January 9, one P Ashwin (24) of Ambattur lodged a complaint at ICF police station that his Sony lens worth Rs 2.5 lakh was stolen from a wedding at the Ambedkar Hall in ICF two days ago. While police issued a CSR to him, fellow wedding photographers took the matter to social media and posted photos the suspect claiming that the same person had been stealing cameras since 2016 at different wedding events across Chennai. Since they also shared the CCTV footage images of the suspects from different weddings and CSRs issued by police in Mylapore and ICF police stations, it garnered the attention of senior officers.

Kilpauk Deputy Commissioner Karthikeyan constituted a special team to probe the incident and the combing of the CCTV footage revealed that the man reached the wedding hall in ICF on bicycle. His trail revealed that he parked the cycle at the parking lot of Ambattur railway station. Police personnel in plainclothes waited for him to return to the railway station and secured him when he came to take the cycle. At the station, though the man initially refuted the police’s claims, he latter admitted that he was the person behind all the camera thefts reported in Avadi, Ambattur, Kolathur, ICF and Mylapore since 2016.

He was identified as I Samsudeen of Villivakkam. Inquiries revealed that he used to visit marriages for free food when he was a fruit seller. “He stumbled upon a misplaced phone at a wedding, which he stole and sold it at Burma Bazaar a week later. A broker who became his friend offered to buy stolen articles from him after which he started stealing cameras from the weddings. When the photographers either go to eat or when they are busy with the shoot, Samsudeen stole the spare cameras and lenses and sold them for cheaper prices. The first camera he stole was worth Rs 4.5 lakh, but he sold it for Rs 20,000,” said police.

Based on his confession, six cameras and lenses and six sovereigns which he stole at a wedding were seized. Samsudeen was remanded in judicial custody on Sunday.