CHENNAI: As part of its initiative to curb drug abuse among students, the Tambaram city police conducted raids at 28 locations close to educational institutions near Tambaram and Pallikaranai. Six people, including two Sudanese nationals, were arrested on Wednesday night.
The Pallavaram police arrested Mohammed Alsmane (28) and Mohammed Hayathian (22), both hailing from Sudan. Alsmane, who completed his BCA in 2018, was living in India with an expired visa, the police said. Hayathian, is a second year BSc cyber security student at a private college in Pallavaram.
Inquiries revealed that the two received ganja daily in small quantities from six people who are yet to be traced. Apart from this, the Selaiyur police arrested Rishi, Ajish, Pratish Gulati, and Ayush after conducting raids at six places. The raids have led to seizure of ganja and vital information on a key supplier in Tamil Nadu and other states.
As a sequel to the earlier raids conducted in Tambaram at Adobe Valley, the police said intelligence was gathered on drug peddlers supplying drugs to students in educational institutions and nearby areas. Based on this, the police identified the locations and a coordinated operation followed, with 28 special teams, each led by an inspector and assisted by a sub-inspector and other personnel, including women officers.
The police said that during the raids, they apprehended two who were previously involved in murder cases. The two were supplying ganja to college students. Further investigation is under way into their procurement and supply network.
Tambaram city police had conducted a similar raid in August near Potheri, registering 20 cases and arresting 21 people, including 11 students of SRM Institute of Science and Technology and a history-sheeter named Selvamani (29) who deals in narcotics. The college students were released on bail the next day.