Woman escapes being run over as car-borne men attempt to snatch her chain in Coimbatore

A woman on her morning walk in Coimbatore on Monday narrowly escaped being run over by a car after one of its passengers attempted to snatch her chain and dragged her along in the process. The incident, which happened at a prime residential area, was captured on CCTV camera. Women are mostly targetted by bike-borne chain snatchers but Monday’s incident was a rare instance of a car being used for the crime in Tamil Nadu. A video clip of the incident went viral on social media and mobile messaging platforms.

A woman on her morning walk in Coimbatore on Monday narrowly escaped being run over by a car after one of its passengers attempted to snatch her chain and dragged her along in the process. The incident, which happened at a prime residential area, was captured on CCTV camera. Women are mostly targetted by bike-borne chain snatchers but Monday’s incident was a rare instance of a car being used for the crime in Tamil Nadu. A video clip of the incident went viral on social media and mobile messaging platforms.

The surveillance camera visual showed the woman R. Kausalya, of Hudco Colony at Peelamedu, falling near the rear wheel of the moving car after she resisted the snatching attempt and escaped without being run over.

According to the police, Ms. Kausalya and her husband Rajkumar go for their morning walk from Hudco Colony to nearby G.V. Residency regularly. On Monday, however, she alone went for the walk. When Ms. Kausalya was near a coffee outlet, around 6.30 a.m., a white car approached her from behind. A man sitting on the front passenger seat grabbed her chain when within reach. However, Ms. Kausalya reacted quickly and held the chain firm. Despite being dragged along by the vehicle for a few metres, she did not let go of the chain, causing the snatcher to give up. She fell onto the road, having a close shave with the rear wheel of the car.

Singanallur Police Inspector (investigation wing) M. Meenambigai said the woman did not lose her chain as she resisted the attempt. She suffered abrasions due to the fall. “The car did not have any number plates. It appears to be a taxi cab as there was a yellow reflector sticker on the side as per the surveillance camera visual. Efforts are being made to trace the offenders,” the Inspector said.