CHENNAI: All is fair in love and war, goes the old adage.

So when the father of the girl he was in love with demanded that he come up with ₹10 lakh within a month if he wanted the wedding to happen, car driver Chelladurai roped in a couple of his friends and burgled a locked house on Mudichur Road, Tambaram.

That’s when things started to go downhill for

. He and his friends couldn’t break open the safe in the house and had to be satisfied with an LED TV and a clock, which they took away in their car on June 24.

A day later, house owner Soundarapandian and his family returned and raised the alarm.

The police checked the CCTV images from the area and zeroed in on a car.

On Wednesday, the police tracked down and nabbed Chelladurai, 23, and his friends Mari Michael, 24, and Vignesh, 23, and recovered the TV and the clock.

Police said Mari and Vignesh had also stolen a bike on Mudichur Road two days ago to help Chelladurai meet the “bride price” his sweetheart’s father was demanding.

Tambaram assistant commissioner of police P Asokan said, “We have seized the stolen bike but we are yet to receive the bike missing complaint from the victims.”

Police said Chelladurai, who has studied till Class XII, was involved in a murder case in Chitlapakkam. Chelladurai had hired the car from a friend promising to pay him ₹5,000.

Police have obtained fingerprints from the three and sent them to the state crime record bureau to check if they were involved in any other burglary or theft.

The three were remanded in judical custody on Thursday.