History-sheeter, aides held in Madurai

MADURAI: A history-sheeter involved in more than 20 criminal cases and five of his accomplices were arrested by the city police during a vehicle check in the early hours of Tuesday.Country bombs and lethal weapons were also seized from their car. According to police, Thambithurai (49), a native of Thoothukudi, was caught by the police along with his accomplices - Praveen(20), Karikalan (25), Gurumoorthy(34) of Paramakudi, Sugandhan (26) of Thoothukudi and Ravi (30). Sources said, a police team led by Inspectors K Rajapandian and S Guna Sundaram of Anna Nagar police station conducted vehicle checks in Karimedu on a tip-off that the gang was on its way to the city. Police said Thambithurai was facing around 25 criminal cases in Madurai, Chennai, Coimbatore and Thoothukudi. He was operating under fake names such as Raj Prakash, Goldwin, David Raj and Raj Kumar, they added.