KOCHI: Appearances matter. After all, hardly anyone would suspect that a group of persons travelling in a vehicle with women on board, posing as a family, is involved in any foul play. Add dogs to the mix and the appearance of normal would be complete.
For a drug racket that was busted in Kochi on Wednesday, this had worked like a charm. The gang members, including women, used to transport high-end drugs like MDMA and LSD from Chennai and Puducherry while posing as family members.
To complete the ruse, the gang used Rottweiler and Doberman dog breeds, which are known to be aggressive. The presence of dogs would easily throw off police personnel who might otherwise smell something fishy. The racket, which operated from Kakkanad and supplied synthetic drugs to peddlers across Kerala, was busted in a joint operation by the Customs Commissionerate (Preventive) Kochi and Excise Enforcement Squad.
Over the course of 12 hours – from 1.30pm on Wednesday to 2am on Thursday – the joint team, which included a dog trainer, raided three flats in Kakkanad, Palachuvadu and Padamughal and ended up arresting five persons, including a woman, from the Kakkanad flat, besides seizing 90 grams of MDMA (ecstasy) worth over Rs 1 crore. A car was also impounded while three rottweiler and doberman dogs were detained. Kozhikode natives Sreemon, Muhammad Favas and Shamna, Kasargod native Ajmal alias Aju and Idukki native Muhammad Afsal were arrested.
Though more persons, including another woman, were taken into custody their arrests were not recorded. Sreemon, who was expelled from the Indian Army, is the kingpin of the racket, said excise officials. A statement issued by the customs said the gang was involved in distributing MDMA in Ernakulam, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur, Wayanad and Kasaragod districts.
“The gang members used to travel as family members, with women members and pet dogs, to evade inspections at checkpoints. Further investigation is on,” said the statement.
Excise officials said the gang came to Kochi two months ago and rented four luxury flats in Kakkanad and nearby areas. Before moving here, the gang operated from Kozhikode and Kannur.
“The gang procured drugs from Chennai and Puducherry. The members travelled there multiple times to get MDMA and LSD. They hired luxurious cars like Audi and BMW to go to Chennai,” said an excise official, adding that the women were used as carriers. Seven members, including two women lived in the Kakkanad flat, though they had rented more flats in Palachuvadu and Padamughal. One of the women was a live-in partner of a gang member. We raided three flats. We have information that the gang had rented one more flat and we are trying to get the details,” said the officer.
The accused lived a luxurious life, hosting parties and renting high-end vehicles. The monthly rent of each flat was Rs 20,000.
“The residents’ associations of the respective apartments had warned them several times, as they regularly hosted parties, which sometimes continued late into the night. We suspect that the accused hosted rave parties but need further investigation to confirm anything,” said the excise officer. The accused were produced before a magistrate court and remanded in judicial custody. The excise department will seek their custody for further interrogation.
The joint team of customs and excise officials also comprised a dog trainer, who was included after the officials received specific input that the gang possessed several Rottweiler and Doberman canine breeds.
“We received information that drugs were being transported in car in which there were several dogs too. We checked one flat each in Palachuvadu and Padamughal areas. We could raid the flat at Kakkanad, from where the accused were arrested, by late night only,” an Excise official said.