NAGAPATTINAM: The district police on Sunday arrested three fishermen and seized 364 kg of ganja meant to be smuggled to Sri Lanka via sea. An FRP motorised boat was also seized.
The accused were identified as K Sathiyaseelan (37) of Velankanni, M Mahendran (32) and T Sugumar (29) of Naluvethapathi. Acting on a tip-off, the police on Sunday detained Sathiyaseelan and during interrogation he confessed to have hidden ganja at a fisher's house in Naluvethapathi village in Vedaranyam.
Accordingly, Sub Inspector G Balamurugan and Nagapattinam SP Harsh Singh's special team raided Mahendran's house hours later and seized 182 parcels of ganja, each weighing two kilograms kept hidden in the backyard, sources said. Mahendran and his assistant Sugumar were taken into custody.
"The accused were planning to smuggle the contraband to Sri Lanka in a fishing boat. We have over the past three months seized around a tonne of cannabis from the district, meant to be smuggled to Sri Lanka" SP Singh told TNIE.
The Vettaikaraniruppu police registered a case under the provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. The accused were subsequently remanded in judicial custody.