Elusive gangster Sambhav Senthil tracked down to U.K., key associate hiding in Dubai

The Greater Chennai Police (GCP) have tracked down the city’s elusive gangster, Sambhav Senthil, to the United Kingdom, and his associate Mottai Krishnan to Dubai.

Authorities are now working to secure their custody, and bring them back to Chennai to face multiple pending criminal cases, police sources said.

Senthil, an A+ history-sheeter — a category reserved for those accused in more than two murders — is wanted in connection with the murder of Bahujan Samaj Party leader K. Armstrong in July 2024. Investigators also suspect his involvement in at least six other murders, apart from attempted murder and extortion cases.

“Our teams have traced the accused to foreign soil, and are pursuing all legal measures to secure his custody and ensure his return to Chennai,” A. Arun, GCP Commissioner, told The Hindu.

A Look Out Circular was earlier issued against him at all airports, followed by a Red Corner Notice through Interpol. Now that he has been located in the U.K., authorities have initiated extradition proceedings under the India-U.K. treaty, and submitted responses to queries raised by British officials, sources added.

In the case of Mottai Krishnan, who has been on the run for more than 15 months since Armstrong’s murder, Interpol initially issued a Blue Corner Notice seeking information. After he was traced to Dubai, a Red Corner Notice was issued to provisionally arrest and extradite him.

The police said Senthil had been orchestrating crimes from abroad, using internet-based voice services to direct hirelings, complicating efforts to track his communications.

His name first appeared in the murder of advocate Kamesh Srinivasan near Mahabalipuram, and later in the killings reported in Neelankarai in 2017 and Muthialpet in 2018. He was also linked to the 2020 bomb attack on gangsters Kakkathoppu Balaji and CD Mani on Anna Salai.

Facing intensified police scrutiny, he is believed to have fled to Thailand before shifting operations to the U.K.

Investigators said Senthil’s rivalry with Armstrong dates back to a 2005 property dispute. He later conspired with other history-sheeters, providing funds and explosives through Mottai Krishnan and other intermediaries. The police alleged that he transferred ₹4 lakh via Mottai Krishnan to execute the Armstrong murder plot. Officials linked him to gangster Nagendran, on whose behalf he carried out a number of assignments.