NAGAPATTINAM : Police on Saturday arrested a 40-year-old bootlegger near Kizhvelur on the Nagapattinam-Tiruvarur border on charges of smuggling arrack from Puducherry. An unlicenced automatic pistol and cash of `35,000 were also recovered from the MUV in which he was travelling.
According to sources, the bootlegger was identified as Kathir alias Kathiravan who hailed from Melavanjoor village in Karaikal.
On Saturday night, Nagapattinam ASP Shashank Sai received a tip-off that arrack procured in Pondicherry was being transported illegally in a car from Needamangalam to Nagapattinam.
Based on the information, a police team led by the ASP conducted a vehicle check near Kizhvelur. During the inspection, the team intercepted a Toyota Innova car but the driver fled the spot on seeing the police, while the other lone occupant, identified as the notorious bootlegger Kathir, was detained.
On inspecting the MUV, around 105 litres of arrack was found stocked inside Besides, the team retrieved a 7.62 mm automatic pistol loaded with four bullets along with two magazines from the car.
The pistol has been sent to forensic analysis for a detailed report. A case was registered under the provisions of Arms Act, 1956 for illegal possession of pistol.