The building at Cinema Nagar in Salem, from where 600 kg of silver bars and products were stolent | Photo Credit: E. Lakshmi Narayanan
A four-member gang reportedly stole 600 kg of silver bars and other articles worth ₹15 crore from a trader’s storage facility in Salem on Monday (October 12, 2026).
Balasubramanian, 60, a resident of Cinema Nagar near Pallapatti in Salem Corporation, is a wholesale silver bar trader. He procures silver bars and manufactures silver anklets and other such articles to supply to jewellery stores.
He owns a building near his house where he stores the silver bars and articles. Venkatesan, 60, a resident of Periya Pudur, works as the watchman at the building.
In the wee hours of Monday, a four-member gang with their faces covered arrived at the building, attacked the watchman, and tied him up. The gang sprayed the CCTV cameras installed in the building to obstruct their view, broke the lock, and entered the building. They stole 600 kg of silver bars and products worth ₹15 crore and fled the scene. Later, the watchman managed to untie himself and alerted Balasubramanian, who informed the Pallapatti police.
The police rushed to the spot and conducted inquiries. Forensic experts gathered fingerprints at the scene, and a sniffer dog was also brought to the building. The police found that the gang had also stolen the digital video recorder (DVR) from the building.
Salem City Police Commissioner A.G. Babu visited the scene of the crime. The Pallapatti police registered a case and are examining CCTV footage from cameras in the locality to identify the gang. Special teams have also been formed to nab the gang.
Published - October 12, 2026 02:54 pm IST