Madurai: A life convict from Tamil Nadu who absconded during parole flew to Andaman Islands , hoping to evade police and start a new life. But CCTV recording from a police station provided the crucial lead for Ramanathapuram police to unravel his escape plan, arrest him within days and return him to prison last week.
Arun Pandian , 33, was serving life sentence at Madurai Central Prison when he secured 21 days’ parole last month for his mother’s eye surgery. When he failed to return to prison on Oct 2, police began searching but found no trace of him in Madurai, where his mother was undergoing treatment. Nehaa said Arun was staying at a friend’s house and had secured employment at a local bar for Rs 15,000.
Police then traced Vinoth’s mobile phone records, which revealed his journey from Madurai to Chennai and subsequently to Port Blair in the Andaman Islands.
“Further investigation identified him as Arun’s friend Vinoth Kumar ,” said Antony Raj, sub-inspector at Kenikarai police station in Ramanathapuram. She said Antony Raj and his team travelled to Andaman and, with local police assistance, located and arrested Arun last week. He switched off his mobile phone and disappeared. The first breakthrough came when investigators reviewed CCTV footage from a local police station where Arun was required to report and sign during his parole under a court order. They noticed a man accompanying him during his visits. Vinoth had returned to Ramanathapuram, where police tracked him down. During questioning, he disclosed that Arun had sought his assistance, borrowed his phone and planned the escape to Andaman with his help. He was subsequently brought to Ramanathapuram.
Arun had been sentenced to life imprisonment in 2021 for murdering his sister’s father-in-law following a family dispute in 2017.