OMR residents seek solution to frequent cases of bike theft

They say the police have not taken action despite complaints

R. Rajendran, a resident of Kumaran Kudil Main Road off Old Mahabalipuram Road, had parked his bike inside the house, locked it and had tied it with a chain before heading to sleep on Saturday night. It was stolen 15 days ago and retrieved after a few days. On Sunday morning, it was stolen again.

It is not just Mr. Rajendran, the locality witnesses frequent cases of bike theft. Many claim that there has not been any proper action from the police to stop the theft.

“The thieves broke the lock. The youngsters broke the chain and took the bike away. Upon checking the CCTV footage from the neighbouring house, we found that they had come in an autorickshaw to commit the crime,” said Mr. Rajendran.

When the residents went to Thoraipakkam police station, there was no one present there.

Last week, the thieves had struck at the house of T. Ranjit, who works in a bank. “This has become a regular occurrence. Apart from the bikes, the thieves stole a meter box from the locality two weeks ago,” claimed Mr. Ranjit.

He said that when he took the CCTV footage to the Thoraipakkam police station, the police personnel claimed that the clarity of the footage was not good, but assured action.

S. Saminathan, secretary, Kumaran Kudil Association, said that it appeared as if the same gang was involved in all the cases of bike theft. “The CCTV footage shows the thieves arriving in an autorickshaw. They are lean in appearance. While one waits outside, the other gets into the house to steal the bike,” he added.

Residents want a permanent solution to this menace. “We go to sleep trusting the police, but now we are not able to go to bed peacefully. We purchase the bikes with hard-earned money and it is important for our work,” said a resident.

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