KOCHI: The police on Sunday nabbed a three-member gang involved in smuggling synthetic drugs under the cover of making short films and recovered 1.8kg of MDMA from their possession. Nidhin Viswam, 25, of Alangad, Nidhin K Venu aka Thamburu, 28, and Amith Kumar, 29, of Peruvaram were arrested from North Paravoor under ‘Operation Clean’ carried out under Rural SP Vaibhav Saxena’s leadership.
The drugs were recovered from the house, which the trio had taken on rent in Thathappilly under the garb of shooting a short film, and the tyres of a vehicle parked in the house’s compound. Police said the accused used to smuggle drugs from New Delhi and sold it to customers for retail price. “They used to travel to Delhi by flight and buy used cars there. They would then smuggle the drugs in these vehicles. In the latest seizure, they had concealed the MDMA in the vehicle’s tyres,” said an officer.
The officer said the trio had taken the house on rent saying it was for shooting a short film. “They even conducted an ‘audition’,” said the officer. The officer said Nidhin Venu was earlier arrested with 12kg of ganja in Palakkad while Nidhin Viswam was accused in several criminal cases, including attempt to murder. The police said this was the second major seizure of a commercial quantity of drugs in rural police limits under Operation Clean.