Four hired killers who were into making bombs held from Chennai's Karasangal forest area

CHENNAI: Four men who police said were into making bombs and also worked as hired killers were arrested at gunpoint from the Karasangal forest area near Tambaram on Monday night.
Police who seized country bombs, machetes and raw material from Surya, 26, of Potheri, Azhageswaran, 28, Vinoth, 29, of Samathuvapuram near Karasangal, Nagaraj, 21, of Pazhayannur, have launched a hunt for six others in this connection.All the arrested have been sent to jail.
Police said the gang members had been using the Karasangal forest area for their illegal activities and as a hideout, the almost complete absence of movement of people coming in handy to store the raw material used for manufacturing bombs.
Based on specific information provided by a few residents of some nearby villagers after they spotted suspicious activities, a team from the Manimangalam police station, on the orders of Tambaram police commissioner A Amalraj, intensified checks in the Karasangal forest area and chanced upon the gang members. While six men managed to escape, the police nabbed the others. Soon after the arrests, the area was cordoned off.
Inquiries with the apprehended men revealed that they were all hired by bigger gangs from time to time to commit serious offences and were involved in several cases including murder, attempt to murder and assault. They also supplied country bombs to gangsters in other districts of the state.
In the latest instance, they were in the process of making a few bombs for crime cases including, possibly, of murder in adjoining districts of Kancheepuram and Chengalpet and Chennai's outskirts when they were nabbed, police said.
The Manimangalam police, who suspect the gang members had been operating in the area for nearly six months, are investigating to find out from where they got the raw material for the bombs.
They are also trying to find out against who the various cases of crime including of murder were being hatched.
With the help of the inputs given by the arrested men, police are searching for the others and have intensified vehicle checks in the area.