One car to check for cops, one to carry ganja; NCB traps both
Chennai: They split into two teams. One drove ahead in an SUV to check for police checks. The other followed hours later in a sedan, boot packed with 107 kg of ganja. However, the Narcotics Control Bureau laid traps at both ends—Chennai's outskirts near Red Hills at night, and Athur the next morning—and caught all five gangsters within 12 hours.
The case began with a tip-off received by NCB intelligence officer Jitendra Pratap Singh on January 7, 2019. Acting swiftly, a team intercepted the SUV near Karanodai toll plaza.
Although no contraband was found in the vehicle, its three occupants—Eswaran, Jayachandran, and Jayaprabhu—admitted they were escorting another vehicle loaded with ganja. They were taken to the NCB office, and their statements led officials to the second car—a sedan—expected to cross Athur toll plaza the next morning.
At 10.10am on Jan 8, the sedan was stopped. Inside the boot were 50 yellow polythene packets.
Field tests confirmed they contained ganja. The total seizure weighed 107 kg.
The other two accused—Surulivel and Ramesh—were arrested on the spot. All five were charged under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act for trafficking commercial quantity ganja. On May 29, Principal Special Judge S Hermies sentenced all five men to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment each and fined them 2 lakh apiece.
The court ruled that both vehicles were part of a coordinated smuggling plan—one car testing the road, the other carrying the load. The court overruled minor procedural lapses, stating they did not affect the evidentiary chain. Both vehicles, five mobile phones, 21,100 in cash, and the sealed contraband were ordered confiscated. The seized ganja will be destroyed after the appeal period ends.
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