Bomb Saravanan, one of the key suspects in the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader K. Armstrong, was arrested by the Chennai police from Chittoor near the Andhra Pradesh border on Wednesday night. He was brought to Chennai and taken to MKB Nagar godown to identify the weapons linked to the Armstrong case.
Police captured Saravanan, a known history-sheeter, after a brief encounter. He hurled a country bomb at the cops while trying to escape, but fortunately, it failed to detonate. As he tried to throw another bomb, the police opened fire and shot him in the leg.
In their attempt to overpower the accused, Inspector Ambedkar and Sub Inspector Mani were injured and admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital in Chennai. Saravanan was also taken for treatment to the Stanley Medical College Hospital.
The police recovered four country-made bombs, a sickle, a sword and five kilos of ganja from Saravanan when they arrested him.
Saravanan is wanted in 33 criminal cases including the murder of his brother and a BSP member Thennarasu. Saravanan is also accused in the 2023 Jayaseelan murder case.
Armstrong’s murder in July 2024 sent shock waves across Tamil Nadu, raising a huge question on the law and order situation in the state. The BSP leader was murdered with heavy weapons when he was walking towards his home in North Chennai. Police have arrested several history-sheeters allegedly linked to the murder. Weeks after Armstrong’s death, Thiruvengadam, one of the accused, was killed in a police encounter when he allegedly tried to evade arrest and escape.
Earlier, the police had arrested Rowdy Nagendran, another accused in the case. According to police sources, Saravanan had revealed during the investigation that he and his associates had launched a plot to eliminate Nagendran.
Saravanan was brought to locate a hidden stash of weapons at MKB Nagar in North Chennai.