Arrested cop had close links with most wanted gangster

COIMBATORE: Inspector Muthukumar, who has been arrested in connection with the 3.9 crore robbery case, acted at the behest of a history-sheeter as well as the most wanted gangster from Kerala.
Muthukumar got the tip-off about the cash movement from the history-sheeter Panikkavalappil Veettil Sreedharan alias ‘Kodali' Sreedharan. The gangster was arrested by Muthukumar eight years back when he was working in Nagercoil for hawala transactions, a police source said.
Since then a friendship blossomed between the two. Kodali Sreedharan was last arrested by the Bengaluru police in 2009 for allegedly murdering the scion of Muthoot group of companies.
Sreedharan, a notorious criminal, has 50 cases against him, including dacoity, murder and hawala transactions. He has often boasted about his strong links with the ministers in both Kerala and Karnataka. Police said the modus operandi of Sreedharan has been the same in every case. "He would often hire men to waylaid cars and trucks and rob the cash and escape with the vehicle," said an official.
District superintendent of police R V Ramya Bharathi said that they had proof to establish that Muthukumar and Sreedharan had links. "Muthukumar has been posted in many districts in Tamil Nadu. In Nagercoil and Thoothukudi, they must have got acquainted," she said.
Muthukumar, sub-inspector Sarvanan and head constable Dharmendra were part of a special team formed to nab a gang that was involved in a kidnap for ransom case in Karur.
The incident had taken place in August. Muthukumar had visited Coimbatore in the guise of tracing the gang.