Theni district police nab ganja suppliers from AP

MADURAI: A special team from Theni police nabbed two ganja suppliers from Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. They were brought to Tamil Nadu and were produced before the court for cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act in Madurai on Friday.

Theni superintendent of police R Shiva Prasad said district police registered two NDPS cases, one at the Cumbum north police station and another at the Kadamalaikundu police station in July and arrested six ganja peddlers after seizing 31kg of ganja from them. In both cases, police investigation revealed that the peddlers received ganja from Manjunathkumar and Beta Ramana from Visakhapatnam.

A special team was formed under Cumbum police inspector Parthiban and sub-inspector Kathirasan and Manikandan and went to Visakhapatnam on Aug 3 to arrest the ganja suppliers.

The team tracked the movements of Manjunathukumar and Beta Ramana for three days and picked them up on Aug 6 and 7 respectively. The team produced the accused before a magistrate in Visakhapatnam and obtained a transit warrant to bring them to Tamil Nadu.

Manjunathukumar and Beta Ramana were among the main suppliers of ganja to peddlers in Madurai, Dindigul and Theni districts. They arrange accommodation, food and other services in Visakhapatnam for buyers and deliver ganja on demand.

“To curtail the transport of ganja into Tamil Nadu, police have been tracing the sources of the contraband in all the cases involving a substantial seizure. Suppliers including those from Andhra Pradesh are being arrested and detained under the Goondas Act in fit cases,” said the SP.