Compiled by MANJIT KAUR, C. ARUNO and R. ARAVINTHAN

       THE son of a former Tamil Nadu minister, along with six accomplices, have been arrested for stealing a container filled with 12 tonnes of cashew nuts and smuggling it across the state, Makkal Osai reported.

       The cashew nuts were estimated to be worth about 10 million rupees (RM564,533).

       The shipment was originally for export to Japan.

       The mastermind of the case, identified as Jebasingh, is apparently the son of former Minister in the Labour Welfare Department ST Chellapandian.

       During the robbery, the gang waylaid the truck while it was on its way to a port.

       They threatened the driver at knifepoint and drove away with the truck.

       The gang members also disabled the GPS tracker on the truck, but police managed to track down the vehicle through coordination across three districts.

       They were eventually apprehended in Namakkal district.

       The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.