Date:10/03/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/03/10/stories/2007031019330300.htm

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

The `unsolved' case diary of the city police

Several major crime cases haven't been cracked by the police, despite their best efforts, says L. Srikrishna

Despite the best efforts of the Chennai Police, some major crimes, including murder for gain, still remain unsolved.

In the fag end of 2006, an elderly couple were found dead in their independent house in Velachery. The perpetrators of the crime left no visible clue, and the case remains open. After committing the crime, the murderers, still not identified, fled from the house in the car owned by the couple. The car was recovered near Padappai here. Special teams formed to probe the case have questioned many suspects, but the case remains unsolved. Take another case. The body of a youth was found packed in a suitcase, lying in a compartment of a train that arrived here from Bangalore in January second week. Though investigators claimed to have obtained vital clues, the case had not yet been solved, according to railway police.

Investigators say many cases of murder for gain, house breaking and robbery reported between 2000 and 2005 remain pending. In fact, the oldest case pending is more than a decade old: a family of three (father, mother and daughter) were found dead in their house in Aminjikarai police station limits.

The sensational murder of a woman, the wife of a Central government officer, who lived in the residential quarters in KK Nagar police station limit, has still not been cracked. The victim was alone at home, when the murderers gained entry and killed her. Unsolved cases were pending in Kodambakkam, Pondy Bazaar, Ashok Nagar, Basin Bridge and Ice House police stations; in all the cases, the victims had been murdered in their homes when alone.

As for robbery cases, a special team is investigating some 35 major crimes. At least 10 cases of jewellery weighing over 10 kilos, robbed from bullion merchants, were pending in Flower Bazaar police district alone. In Aminjikarai, five years ago, a robber gang broke open the shutter of a jewellery showroom and got away with over 500 sovereigns, police said.

Similarly, about a month back in Pondy Bazaar police station limits, a merchant lost 6.5 kg of gold in broad daylight at knifepoint.

A house breaking case reported in an advocate's residence in Rajamangalam police station, where robbers escaped with jewellery and cash valued over Rs 3 lakh, is pending. Similarly, cases are pending in Adyar, Besant Nagar and Villivakkam police station limits. A senior officer said they had taken stock of the pending cases and had mounted surveillance on people suspected of involvement. Surveillance had also been stepped up at the Puzhal prison to keep track of the release of habitual offenders. The police, led by Additional Commissioner S R Jangid, had recently solved the grille offence cases by arresting a 10-member gang near Kolkata, which was a shot in the arm for the force.