Murugan, a resident of Thiruvarur, has many cases pending against him in Bengaluru, Chennai and other parts of south India.

The mastermind behind the infamous Lalitha Jewellery heist, Murugan (45), surrendered before the 11th Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate in Bengaluru civil court Friday. The history-sheeter has been on the run for several years. The Tiruchirapalli special task force has sought the city court’s approval to take Murugan into their custody.


Murugan, a resident of Thiruvarur, has many cases pending against him in Bengaluru, Chennai and other parts of south India. His relative and accomplice in the heist, Suresh (28), surrendered before the Judicial Magistrate court -I at Chengam in Thiruvannamalai on Thursday. Suresh turned himself in after cops put pressure by arresting his mother P Kanagavalli, a resident of Seerathopu in Tiruchirapalli district, who was also part of the robbery. Police had recovered 450 grams of gold from her. The special task force is also questioning the relatives of Murugan and others who might have played a role in the heist.

On October 3, Lalitha Jewellery, a three-storeyed building near Chathiram bus Stand in Tiruchirappalli district, was burgled in the early hours after masked men gained entry into the store by drilling a hole in its wall. The prime accused Murugan and Suresh reportedly reached a wall leading to the west end of the store through a school building, which was shut on account of quarterly exam holidays. A day after the robbery, the Tamil Nadu Police released CCTV footage in which two masked men were seen entering the ground floor which houses the Gold and Diamond’s section. The police confirmed that the theft had happened between 2-4 am. Lalitha Jewellery Chairman Kiran Kumar said jewellery worth Rs 13 crore was stolen from the store.