RAMANATHAPURAM
When Samuel Moses, a retired Headmaster, picked up a bag containing ₹36.27 lakh, which fell from a Ramanathapuram-bound passenger train at Mudukulathur Road railway crossing in Paramakudi and handed it over at the nearby tea stall, many thought he was playing the role of a ‘Good Samaritan’ but the episode turned fishy.
Samuel Moses was standing near the railway gate when he found a bag falling from Madurai-Mandapam passenger train and a passenger at the exit asking him to hand over the bag to the tea stall. The passenger said the bag fell accidentally and he would collect it on alighting at Paramakudi.
Police said without knowing what was concealed in the bag, Samuel Moses handed it over to Kandasamy, the tea shop owner, near the railway gate and left. When he returned, he saw Mahendran, the train passenger, too coming to the shop to take possession of the bag. Stating that he was a jewellery merchant, he claimed that the bag fell accidentally from the train.
After an argument, Samuel Moses found that there was something fishy in the episode and alerted the police. Mahendran told the police that he was returning from Madurai with the cash bag after selling old jewels and the bag fell from the train when he was getting ready to alight at Paramakudi. The police grew suspicious as Samuel Moses said he saw Mahendran pushing the bag out of the train with his leg.
After taking the cash to the police station, the police questioned Samuel Moses, Kandasamy and Mahendran and found contradictions in their statements. Suspecting this could be a case of hawala racket, Paramakudi police referred the case to Income Tax officials, who took possession of the cash and launched an investigation, the police said.