Thiruvananthapuram: The excise department has arrested three men for trying to smuggle hashish oil worth Rs 11.5 crore into Thiruvananthapuram.The accused were trying to smuggle 11.5 kg of hashish oil and 2.5 kg of ganja by hiding them in the secret chambers of the car boot and the door. The excise sleuths also seized one sword from the car.
The officials had carried out the vehicle checks after receiving a tip-off.
Ernakulam natives Manu Wilson, 31; Anwar Sadath, 31; and Rajmohan, 28; were arrested from near Venpalavattom in Thiruvananthapuram on Friday morning.
Wilson and Anwar are already accused in a similar case.
A team led by excise circle inspector T Anikumar nabbed the gang.
Officials said that the gang was trying to transport the hashish oil to Thriuvananthapuram from Andhra Pradesh, as per the instructions of Nedukandam native Biju. The hashish oil was meant to be handed over to a dealer who would export it to Maldives.
After interrogating the gang, the excise department has also received information about the person who was to collect the drug from the accused.
“The men have also admitted that the ganja was to be sold in the local market. Though drugs are being smuggled to various parts of Kerala, different gangs are behind them,” Excise Commissioner Rishi Raj Singh said.
“The officers who nabbed the accused would be given Rs 50,000 as reward,” the senior officer added.
Drugs worth Rs 3 cr seized in Thrissur
Thrissur: The excise department also seized drugs worth Rs 3 crore from two youths in Thrissur on Friday.
Kizhakkekotta native Mithin (aka Magic Mithun, 25) and Kannur native Chinju Mathew, 26, were the arrested.
The excise sleuths seized 2.5 kg of hashish oil, 1.5 gm of MDMA (Methylenedioxymethamphetamine) and 2.6 gm of amphetamine.
Mithin was arrested from an ornamental fish selling centre in Thrissur town. The drugs were ordered online to the fish selling centre and then sold via Telegram mobile app.
Based on the information provided by Mithin, the police arrested Chinju from the premises of Thrissur railway station. Chinju, who had made Kochi his base, was involved in smuggling drugs to Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode and Palakkad districts via trains.
Hashish, or hash, is a drug made from the resin of the cannabis plant.
