Chennai: Five conned in incidents of attention diversion

CHENNAI: Five persons including four women were conned in different incidents in which the suspects diverted the victims’ attention and stole more than 12 sovereigns jewellery from them since Monday evening.A 29-year-old woman used her eight-month-old daughter to con an elderly woman into parting with two-sovereign chain at Peerkankaranai on Monday evening. However, the woman was arrested and the police rescued the daughter.

Police said Krishnaveni, 74, of Mudichur had just stepped out of a temple, when Divya and her accomplice, along with her female baby, approached the former. “Divya handed her child over to Krishnaveni and asked her to bless it.  The other woman put a dupatta around Krishnaveni’s neck. While getting the baby back, Divya took away the two-sovereign gold chain from Krishnaveni,” said an investigating officer.

Divya has been arrested and remanded in judicial custody.In another incident in Pondy Bazaar, an unidentified man posed as a policeman to Paneerselvam, who was walking back home on Monday evening.“The man told Paneerselvam to remove his two-sovereign chain and keep it safe. The man offered to wrap it in paper and Paneerselvam handed over his chain when the man replace the chain with stones and took away the chain,” said  police.

In two other incidents, one reported from K K Nagar on Monday night and another from Teynampet on Tuesday morning, the men approached two women on the pretext of getting their blessings and stealing their chain.

“Kanchana, 56, was walking back home after eating at a hotel at Nesapakkam, when an unidentified man approached her and sought her blessing, saying that he was opening a new gold shop. Believing this, the woman handed over her chain which was kept in a plate along with the other pooja items as part of a ritual. He told the victim he would go and buy a few more pooja items and never returned,” said a police source.
Similarly, Janaki, who works in the house-keeping department in a software company at Seethammal Nagar in Teynampet, was heading to work. “A man intercepted her and tried to strike a conversion with her. He said she resembled his mother. He offered to buy her a new gold chain to replace her old one. 

Believing him, the woman handed over her chain and he did not return,” said another police personnel.
In yet another incident at KK Nagar, an unidentified man offered Jagathambal, 66, cool drinks.
“As the woman drank the juice, she felt dizzy and the man stole her four-sovereign chain, ear-ring and nosepin and escaped,” said a police source.