Gang of autorickshaw drivers booked for another robbery targeting migrant workers in Coimbatore

New Indian Express

2 days ago

COIMBATORE: The Racecourse police booked another robbery case against a gang of autorickshaw drivers who had been robbing migrant workers arriving in Coimbatore city.
The gang was arrested a few days ago for robbing money from migrant workers arriving at Coimbatore railway station after taking them to an isolated place in the guise of offering them a ride.
After their arrest, another set of workers who were robbed by the gang complained to the police, and the police booked a second case a week after the first one.
Drivers B Nowfal Basha (29) of Annur, R Senthilkumar (33) of Selvapuram and K Mohammed Azharuddin (25) of Ukkadam were arrested on June 18 on extortion charges based on the complaint from three north Indian workers.
They were accused of taking the workers to a secluded place and extorting Rs 13,000 from them. The three were arrested and lodged in the Coimbatore Central Prison.
Now Senthilkumar and Nowfal Basha along with their mastermind, namely Ragu, have been booked in another similar case of robbery for allegedly robbing Rs 4,700 from workers arriving in the city.
The latest case is based on a complaint filed by M Dhanapal (34) of Pudukkottai district on behalf of his five north Indian colleagues. They were looted by the gang on June 14 after they took an autorickshaw from the Coimbatore railway station to reach Gandhipuram.
An autorickshaw driver and his two aides first robbed Rs 4,700 cash from them after assaulting them near the Valankulam-Sungam bypass road. Then they were forced to transfer online Rs 11,000 through an UPI transaction. The gang subsequently dropped the guest workers at Ukkadam.
The workers didn't approach the police as they were threatened. But after coming to know about the arrest of the gang, they revealed the matter to their colleague Dhanapal, who then complained to the police on Wednesday. The police booked a case and investigated the whereabouts of prime suspect Ragu.
Peelamedu inspector L Kandaswamy said the gang robbed migrant workers who came to the city for the first time. He urged people who faced a similar ordeal to lodge complaints. Meanwhile, the police held a meeting with the drivers operating their autorickshaws in the vicinity of the city railway station, and urged them not to encourage such activities with their knowledge.
"We found 117 drivers based at autorickshaw stands. They have been warned not to engage in or encourage such illegal activities. If anyone does so, stringent action would be taken," Kandaswamy stated.