In major meth haul, Ramnathapuram cops seize 1.5 kg contraband worth Rs 1 crore; 9 held

MADURAI: Ramanathapuram police busted an alleged meth lab and distribution network, arresting nine drug peddlers, securing two key peddlers, including one from Chennai, and seizing 1.5 kg of methamphetamine worth Rs 1 crore.

"The gang converted a lathe into a small laboratory and manufactured methamphetamine under the guidance of senior peddlers from Chennai, Kerala and Vellore. Their primary target was the youth," G Chandeesh, Superintendent of Police, Ramanathapuram, told DT Next.

Shakul Hameed of Mannadi in Chennai and Zakir Hussain of Ilayangudi are under police interrogation. Shakul Hameed played an active role in distributing methamphetamine, while Zakir Hussain from Ilayangudi was involved in cooking meth, the official said.

The gang allegedly produced between four and five kilograms of methamphetamine every month. Besides targeting youth in the southern districts, the gang also used a dedicated private messaging application to coordinate its operations, which allegedly involved persons from Kerala and Sri Lanka.

Acting on credible information, the Kenikkarai Police Sub-Inspector conducted a surprise raid in Bharathi Nagar on 24th July and arrested two alleged drug peddlers, Sakthivel (23) and Kalanithi (23), both from Ramanathapuram. Police seized 11 grams of methamphetamine from them, and they were remanded in judicial custody.

Subsequently, on July 28, the Bazaar police arrested three persons — Mohammed Umarul Jamin (22) and Mohammed Aslam (22), both of Karikootam, and Jebis (25) of Kannanur in Kanniyakumari district. During interrogation, the accused revealed that they had procured the methamphetamine from the Ilayangudi area. Based on the information, a special police team detained four persons Sikkandar Bathusha (53), Sheikh Mohammed (38), Jamal Moideeen (65) and Habeebur Rahman (52), all from Ilayangudi and seized 700 grams of methamphetamine. They were remanded on July 28.

Besides methamphetamine, the police seized polyethene raw material used for preparing packets to store the drug and five kilograms of iodine allegedly used in its manufacture. "Some of the materials used in manufacturing the drug were procured online using a pharmaceutical license," a police source said, adding that investigators also recovered precision weighing instruments and packing materials from the motorbikes allegedly used to distribute the drug.