Bangalore: It took more than three weeks of old-fashioned detective work — patient waiting and watching with eyes peeled — for HSR Layout police to nab the perpetrator of the ‘nail menace’ on the Outer Ring Road, but the police were taken aback by the man’s reported confession. The motive at first was desperation to make ends meet, but it inevitably turned to greed. The modus operandi was one of devious enterprise.

Police, on Tuesday, arrested Ranganath, 27, a resident of 24th Main, Agara, the man allegedly responsible for purposely scattering nails between Silk Board and Marathalli on the Outer Ring Road with the intention of puncturing vehicle tyres. Police found that Ranganath, a sugarcane juice seller, had worked both demand and supply sides of the tyre repair business.

The ‘nail menace’ posed two massive problems for the police. Cops not only had to deal with scores of complaints from angry motorists, mostly techies, but also with traffic congestion caused by vehicles whose tyres suddenly went flat.

A special team, comprising traffic police, was formed to nab the culprit. Puncture repair shops along the stretch were immediately suspects, but the efforts of the team drew a blank. The HSR Layout police then took the initiative and, a team comprising about six personnel, mostly beat constables, and headed by the police inspector Raghavendra SR began the task of tracking down the culprit. The team began work at the start of this month and at around midnight on Tuesday-Wednesday, constables Halappa and Mithun struck pay dirt.

The constables, who were patrolling the ORR near Ibbalur Junction, noticed a man pushing a bike. The biker had a flat tyre and even as the constables watched, an auto pulled up. The driver asked the biker what the problem was. The biker replied that his tyre was flat and that he needed to fill air. The auto driver told the biker that he had a pump and offered to fill air in the tyre. After checking the tyre, the auto driver told the biker that the tyre was punctured. He offered to repair it for a fee.

The incident appeared too pat for the constables, so they called inspector Raghavendra and informed him of what they had witnessed. The constables also told their boss that they had seen the same auto on the stretch for the last three days, but never with passengers. Raghavendra asked the constables to search the auto.

As the constables conferred with their boss, the auto driver and hapless biker haggled over a fee. The auto driver demanded Rs 300 to repair the puncture. The biker wanted a reduction, saying it cost.

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