125 kg of ganja seized in Thrissur, four arrested
Four persons were arrested in the operation conducted under the supervision of Thrissur Range DIG Harishanker and led by Thrissur Rural SP B. Krishnakumar.
The ganja kept in sacks and hidden under tarpaulin sheets in the lorry was seized during a special highway check. The arrested individuals were reportedly part of a well-organised inter-State drug trafficking network.
The accused were identified as Ashlin, 25, and Taris, 36, both from Alangad, Aluva, 'Kingini' Shijo, 31, from Cherumkuzhi, Peechi, and Jabir, 30, from Thrikkadeeri, Cherpulassery, Palakkad.
Taris is a prime accused in multiple criminal cases, including a murder in Aluva, and the 2022 Chalakudy highway robbery case, where a group brutally assaulted travellers mistaking them for gold smugglers. He had been under police surveillance for a week, which ultimately led to the ganja seizure.
Shijo faces charges in over 12 cases, including ATM break-ins and multiple drug trafficking cases across districts. Ashlin is reportedly an accomplice of Taris in the highway robbery case.
Jabir is the prime accused in the seizure of 167.5 kg ganja in Malappuram, in which he went absconding just a day before sentencing. In that case, the Manjeri court had convicted all accused and handed down a 30-year prison sentence. Jabir has an active lookout circular (LP warrant) against him in connection with the same.
The seizure was made by a joint team comprising officers from the Chalakudy DySP office and the Pudukkad police.
The police have launched a probe into the smuggling route, investigating where along the way the contraband may have been distributed and how much remains in circulation. Mobile phone records and other digital evidence are being scrutinised.
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