A web-cast saved her life.
On Wednesday, Asha Srikanth, 30, a resident of Kozhikode, was chatting via a web-cast with Poornima, 29, her husband’s sister, who lives in Toronto, Canada.
She heard the doorbell of Poornima’s apartment ring – and all hell broke loose.
“Suddenly, I heard my sister-in-law screaming and could see hazy images of her locked in a scuffle with a hefty stranger,” Asha told HT.
“I saw the man hit Poornima hard and drag her out of the room,” she added.
It took Asha a few seconds to recover from the shock. “I immediately called my uncle here who alerted Poornima’s sister in Bangalore. She, in turn, called up Poornima’s neighbour and some other relatives in Canada,” she said.
The web-cast, meanwhile, was on.
“A few seconds later, the stranger noticed the camera. He banged it hard with his fists and it went dead. But this diversion allowed Poornima just enough time to slip out of the apartment with her eight-month-old baby and raise the alarm,” said Asha.
The intruder lost his nerve and fled. On the way out, he grabbed a laptop, a digital camera and a gold chain.
{{/usCountry}}The intruder lost his nerve and fled. On the way out, he grabbed a laptop, a digital camera and a gold chain.
{{/usCountry}}Alerted by several messages from Kozhikode, Bangalore and from his neighbours, Poornima’s husband, rushed home to find his family traumatised but safe.
The Toronto police are investigating the case. It was not immediately clear if they would approach the Srikanths to try and retrieve images of the robber.