PTI
 
Salem, Apr 15: Four years after dreaded forest brigand Veerappan was shot dead by the police following a two-decade long manhunt, his legacy lives on in the Satyamangalam forests in the form elusive "treasures" believed to have been stashed away by the sandalwood smuggler.

After the local media carried photographs of groups of people armed with shovels and crowbars scouring the forests for the 'treasures', speculations are rife that policemen in plainclothes have reportedly joined the public in the hunt in this 1000 sq km forests area.

However, police denied reports that the special police commandos that hunted down Veerappan have joined the treasure-hunt in plainclothes.

Superintendent of Police Pon Manickavel, who is camping at Satyamangalam near here, said 600 Special Task Force men were undergoing intensive training at Theni but they did not venture out into the forests in search of the booty.

Muthulakshmi, widow of Veerappan, on her part added fuel to the fire by telling the media that her husband had the habit of burying plastic bags containing currency notes in Rs 500 and Rs 1000 denominations in the forests or hiding them in tree trunks.

However, Manickavel played down her remarks saying that there was no truth in her statements.

Reports from Satyamangalam said policemen and forest guards were seen roaming in the forests besides groups of people from neighbouring areas looking for the treasure.

In addition to the booty earned through sandalwood smuggling, the brigand is believed to have been paid large sums of money for the release of famous Kannada actor Rajkumar whom he had abducted in 2000.

Veerappan was shot dead by STF personnel in an operation on October 18, 2004.