The police on Wednesday arrested two persons who had stolen ₹6 lakh from the house of a business contractor by diverting the attention of his mother.
The police arrested the accused whose names were given as Moorthy, 40, of Tiruverumbur in Tiruchi and Arun alias Arun Pandian, 22, of Kakkan Colony.
According to the police, Gandhimathi, 51, wife of Ranganathan, a building contractor of Shanmugapuram in Mettupalayam, and their daughter Ponni drew ₹6 lakh from a nationalised bank at Thattanchavady on March 16. The two were returning home with the cash bag on a two-wheeler when the accused, who followed them, sprayed powder on Ms. Gandhimathi. When Ms. Gandhimathi reached home she developed itching on her back and went into the bathroom to have a bath after keeping the cash bag in the living room. Moorthy and Arun went into the house asking for drinking water. When Ms. Gandhimathi’s mother-in-law Parvathi went into the kitchen to get them water, the accused fled the spot with cash bag.
A police team was on patrol in Mettupalayam on Tuesday when it found two persons moving in a suspicious manner. The police detained them for questioning. During interrogation, the police learned about the theft committed by the two in the house of Mr. Ranganathan. They were arrested and ₹1.40 lakh was recovered from them. The two were produced before a local court and remanded in custody in the Kalapet Central Prison.