Chennai: Police on Tuesday arrested two youths including a juvenile —both natives of Odisha — after they made a futile attempt to rob an ATM near Korattur during the early hours of Tuesday.
The youth, police said, were motivated by videos from social media, which had suggested ways to rob an ATM. However, the burglar alarm went off when the duo cut off a wire and a patrol team nearby rushed to the neighbourhood and caught them in the act.
The duo had targeted the Indian Bank ATM on 31st street of the TNHB quarters here, police said. Around 2 am, the duo in an attempt to rob the ATM had cut off a few wires which set off the burglar alarm.
Head constable Mohan and a home guard Prabhakaran who were on night patrol rushed to the ATM on hearing the alarm.
“From a distance, our men could see that the shutters were down. By the time they reached there, the duo got out and took to their heels,” a police officer said.
After a short chase, the duo were rounded up and taken to the Korattur police station for investigations.
While one of them is a 17-year-old, the other person was identified as R Anil Kumar (21) from a village in Gajapati district of Odisha.
Investigations revealed that Anil Kumar got eloped with a girl from his village four months ago to the city. The minor boy had accompanied them and they were staying at a rented place at Mannurpettai near Ambattur. Anil Kumar had also found employment at an electrical firm in Ambattur.
Meanwhile, to meet his financial needs and to make a quick buck and misguided by videos on social media, Anilkumar and the teenager attempted to rob the ATM, police said. The duo were produced before a court and remanded in judicial custody.
