Three men from Uttar Pradesh were arrested for robbing 13 flats at the Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) apartment complex in Kavundampalayam, Coimbatore on November 28. Police say they planned to rob more homes in Ramanathapuram the next day. "They had instructed the autorickshaw driver to pick them up and drop them at Ramanathapuram on Saturday," said a police officer. The accused, I. Asif (45), Kallu Arif (60), and A. Irfan (48), came to Coimbatore on November 27, invited by Asif’s brother Burman and a man named Dawood. Burman, Dawood, and others sell steel utensils door-to-door and may have tipped off the burglars about targets. The trio traveled to Coimbatore by train with sleeper tickets but reserved AC return tickets to avoid checks, said police. They stole 42 sovereigns of gold, 500 grams of silver jewellery, and about ₹1.5 lakh cash but were not satisfied and planned more burglaries on November 29. Arif has 22 cases registered in Uttar Pradesh including 18 burglaries, a murder, an attempted murder, and other serious charges. Asif faced five cases, including a murder; Irfan had three cases. The three were shot in the leg by police after they attacked a constable with a sickle during their arrest on November 29. Asif died in Coimbatore Medical College Hospital on November 30. His post-mortem was done under judicial supervision and recorded on video. Police also arrested autorickshaw driver R. Ayubkhan (35), who helped the men reach the flats for their crime. Burman revealed Asif was his brother only after Asif’s death and initial denied any link. Police may soon book Burman and Dawood in connection with the case.