KOCHI: For years, drug peddlers used to bring ganja to Kochi from the hilly district of Idukki. But in the last few years, the market is bursting at the seams with high-grade synthetic drugs like MDMA and LSD finding their way to the city all the way from Bengaluru and Goa, to keep the city’s youth ‘high’. There is a consistent demand for these drugs, despite high prices. Intensified efforts by police and exicise are revealing more data about the drug ring that extends throughout South India and involves even Nigerian nationals. TNIE delves into the dangerous high eating up our youngsters.
Last month, a Nigerian national who was supplying MDMA (3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, a psychoactive drug commonly known as Ecstasy or Molly) to youngsters in Kochi was picked up by the city police from Bengaluru. Amachukwu Okkeke, 37, a resident of Bilekahalli, Bengaluru, was arrested on charges of smuggling the drug to the Queen of Arabian Sea.
Okkeke is already an accused in a drug case registered by the narcotic cell of Goa Police, and escaped from Goa during the trial. He was hiding in Bengaluru, continuing his drug trade under many names across multiple locations. So far, five youths from Aluva have been arrested in connection with this case.
The Bengaluru and African links in this case came to light after Elamakkara police arrested Ahmmed Yazin, 21, and Mohammed Shahad, 22, on March 2 with 21gm of MDMA. Interrogation revealed that Muhammed Shifaz, who hails from Aluva, supplied them the contraband. Shahad and Yazin went to Bengaluru where Shifaz was studying and procured the drug with the help of 23-year-old Muhammed Riyas.
The city police are now preparing the final report, but Okkeke’s fake nationality posed a roadblock. Police recovered a fake passport and foreign currencies from his possession. And so, the exact source of the drug remains untraceable.
Though Bengaluru and Goa have emerged as major transit hubs for high-end drugs that find their way to Kochi, excise and police authorities opine that tracking the main source is a herculean task. “We have identified that African natives living in Goa control the synthetic drug peddling. The influx of MDMA and LSD to Kochi is from Goa and Bengaluru. The excise department is maintaining strict vigil to bust the supply chain,” said Ashok Kumar T A, deputy commissioner,Excise, Ernakulam.
MDMA comes in 20 brand names while 124 varieties of LSD (Lysergic acid diethylamide) stamps are available in the market