TN man arrested for planning own arrest to get free food and shelter in jail

A man has been arrested after making a hoax call to the police control room in Chennai informing them of an imminent bomb blast at the Erode junction railway station. He made a similar call yet again, announcing that he had planted bombs in the Erode bus stand as well.

Identifying himself as ‘Ibrahim,’ the caller made the phone calls to the control room using a stolen phone. After bomb squads were sent to the railway station and bus stand, police tracked down a man named Sivakumar using the phone number. Sivakumar claimed that the mobile belonged to his brother-in-law Lingaraj, who informed the officials that his phone was stolen two days ago. Around 2 am the next day, a man was found sleeping at the railway station and was held after the police found him suspicious. After the stolen phone he had with him showed the multiple calls made to the control room, the police determined that the man, identified as Santhosh Kumar, was actually behind the phone calls.

After having been married twice, with both his wives eloping later and further quitting his job due to stress, Santhosh became depressed. As he was unemployed and homeless, he reportedly decided to plan his arrest in order to acquire free food and shelter at the jail. His wish became true as he is now under arrest.