Seven held in new year day drug bust in Kerala

Kerala Police arrested seven people, including an MBBS doctor and a BDS student, in a major anti-narcotics operation near Thiruvananthapuram. MDMA, ganja, vehicles and mobile phones were seized as investigations continue into an interstate drug racket

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Police arrested seven people, including an MBBS doctor and a BDS student during a major anti-narcotics operation near here in the early hours of New Year’s Day on Thursday.

The arrests were made by the Attingal and Nedumangad Rural District Anti-Narcotic Special Action Force (DANSAF) teams from a rented house in Thoppil, Kaniyapuram, in the early hours following a tip-off received by the Thiruvananthapuram Rural SP, police said.

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Among those arrested were two women, besides an IT professional, they said.

According to the Kadinamkulam Station House Officer, the gang was allegedly involved in smuggling MDMA and other synthetic drugs from Bengaluru and supplying them, mainly to medical professionals and students. The group was reportedly led by three habitual offenders.

Police said the operation followed an earlier dramatic incident in which the suspects escaped during a high-speed chase after ramming their car into a police jeep.

Acting on fresh intelligence, a team led by the Narcotics DSP surrounded their hideout and arrested all seven suspects without further incident.

During the raid, police seized four grams of MDMA, 100 grams of ganja, and one gram of high-quality hybrid ganja, valued at around Rs 3,000 per gram. Two cars, two motorcycles, and 10 mobile phones were also confiscated.

The operation was carried out by a special team, along with other senior officers.

The accused have been handed over to the Kadinamkulam Police for further investigation and legal action.