Gang from outside TN targets 4 ATMs in T’malai , flees with money

TIRUVANNAMALAI: Around Rs 72.50 lakh in cash was stolen by “out-of-state actors” from four ATMs in three towns of Tiruvannamalai district on Sunday night. While two of the ATMs were in Tiruvannamalai, the other two ATMs were in Kalasapakkam and Polur towns, sources revealed.

North zone IG Kannan, Vellore range DIG MS Muthusamy, Tiruvannamalai SP K Karthikeyan and his Vellore counterpart S Rajesh Kannan are overseeing the operations to nab the culprits.

While attempts were made to rob ATMs earlier, this time ATMs in different towns were broken into and cash stolen, officials said. While three of the ATMs belonged to the SBI, the other one is that of India ATM.

A source said the culprits had reconnoitred the locations thoroughly as they had broken into ATMs which lacked proper CCTV coverage. Also, the culprits used welding machinery to cut open the ATMsATMs.

What surprised police was the audacity with which thieves broke into one machine after the other. With nighttime temperature plummeting most people remained indoors which the culprits used to their advantage.