Police in Trichy have officially registered a case against a 34-year-old man for allegedly deceiving a woman with the false promise of securing a free laptop for her son and making off with her valuable gold jewellery. The incident, which occurred in late August, saw a significant delay before a formal First Information Report (FIR) was filed, highlighting procedural lapses.
The Deceptive Promise and Theft
The accused, identified as A Nevi from Pollikalipalayam in Tirupur district, was a colleague of the complainant, K Azhagumani (35), a resident of Mannadimangalam in Madurai district. Nevi reportedly convinced Azhagumani that a non-profit organization in Trichy was distributing laptops to students free of cost. Trusting his word, Azhagumani travelled to Trichy with her minor son and Nevi on August 30.
The trio checked into a hotel room near the Central Bus Stand. After settling in, Nevi spun a tale that the charity organizers would refuse to hand over the laptop if they saw Azhagumani wearing gold ornaments. He persuaded her to remove all her jewellery and leave it in the room for safekeeping.
The Elaborate Scheme Unfolds
Believing him, Azhagumani removed four sovereigns of gold jewellery, which included her thali (mangalsutra), an ear chain, and a pair of ear studs. She left these items along with her mobile phone in the hotel room. The three then proceeded to a spot near the Chathiram Bus Stand.
At the bus stand, Nevi asked Azhagumani and her son to wait while he went to supposedly meet someone connected to the charity. When he failed to return even after more than an hour, a worried Azhagumani rushed back to the hotel room. To her horror, she found that all her jewellery and her mobile phone were missing. Nevi had vanished with the valuables.
Delayed Police Action and FIR
Azhagumani immediately approached the Cantonment police in Trichy to lodge a complaint. However, the police treated her complaint with scepticism. Instead of registering an FIR immediately, they recorded it only in the community service register on the same day, August 30.
Frustrated with the lack of progress, Azhagumani had to wait for three months. The Cantonment Police finally preferred to register a formal FIR only on November 30, citing no development in the case as the reason for the delay.
The police have now booked A Nevi under sections 318(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for the offences of cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property. An investigation into the case is currently ongoing as authorities work to trace the accused and recover the stolen goods.
