A 65-year-old man, who had earlier served a prison sentence for making a bomb threat, was arrested by the Velachery police for allegedly making a similar hoax call to the police control room in April.
According to the police, the accused, Jothivel, of Thirumalapadi in Ariyalur district, called the police emergency helpline 100 on the night of April 15, and claimed that a bomb had been planted on the bridge in Vijayanagar in Velachery. He then disconnected the call.
The information was relayed to the Velachery police station, following which a police team led by an inspector, along with the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad and sniffer dog squad, searched the area. No explosive was found and the threat was confirmed to be a hoax.
A case was registered and a probe was launched. The police traced Jothivel and arrested him on Tuesday.
The police said Jothivel had been arrested by the Velachery police in 2024 for making a similar bomb threat. He was subsequently convicted by a court and sentenced to nine months in prison. He was released in 2025.
Published – October 01, 2026 12:40 am IST
