63-year-old foils theft by locking burglars inside ATM kiosk

COIMBATORE: A timely and well-thought-out action by an elderly man to lock up two burglars inside the ATM kiosk while they were busy dismantling the machine, helped police arrest a north Indian gang in Salem on Saturday early morning.

Sixty-three-year-old Selvam, a retired government bus driver from Theevattipatti in Salem, had come out of his house on hearing some unusual noise around 3 am. He had rented out two rooms in his building for ATMs.

As Selvam inquired about a stranger standing in front of the ATM on suspicion, the panicked man hurriedly downed the shutter of the kiosk and sped away in his mini-load carrier vehicle.

Suspecting something amiss, he checked out and found some people still inside the ATM kiosk.

Not to let them off, he then acted swiftly to lock the shutters of the kiosk from outside. On receiving information, the Theevattipatti police rushed to the spot and nabbed two youth from North India identified as Nishal Khan, 22 from Rajasthan, and Sajik Khan, 20 from Uttar Pradesh.

A special team of police also tracked and nabbed their accomplice Rabakath Ali, 30 from Haryana near Avinashi with the help of cops from Tirupur. Police have seized welding machines and a load carrier vehicle from the culprits.

Superintendent of Police R Siva Kumar appreciated Selvam for his timely act.

“The burglars had tried to dismantle the ATM and take them away in the load vehicle. However, Selvam foiled their attempts by acting smart,” the SP said. A detailed inquiry is underway to know if the trio was involved in any other previous offences.