Police shoots murder in leg after he attacks them during the arrest in Salem

A person accused of the murder of a 70-year-old woman in Omalur on May 20 was shot by the police after he had attacked two officers with a machete while trying to escape his hiding place at the foothills of the Sankari Fort in the early hours of Saturday (May 24, 2025).

The accused, identified as Naresh Kumar (26), a resident of the village of Kattikaranoor in Omalur Block, has more than 20 robbery issues that have been registered against various police stations in the district.

According to the police, the victim, Sarasu alias Saraswathi, was attacked a resident of Chinnerikadu in Omalur, while she had taken her cattle for grazing. Her body was later found by the locals along the road, with injuries to her ear and nose. Research showed that she was murdered and a sovereign of gold jewelry was stolen. A case was registered by the Deevattipatti police.

Special teams were formed to arrest the accused. During the investigation, it was established that Naresh Kumar was involved in the crime and his hiding place was reduced to the foothills of the fort. When a special police team tried to arrest him, he attacked Vijayaraghavan and Agent Selvakumar with a Machete, both injured Vijayaraghavan and Agent. In response to this, the police fired a service gun and shot Naresh Kumar in the leg, causing him to collapse.

The accused and the two police officers were admitted to the Government Hospital in Sankari.

The police said that the accused was previously aimed at older women, who had grown their jewelry in areas such as Sankari and Magudanchhavadi in the district.