Kochi: Ernakulam Rural Police have arrested the alleged linchpin of a drug trafficking network that supplied large quantities of MDMA to Kerala from Bengaluru.
Dhanesh S Nair, 31, alias ‘Dani’, of Payippad, Haripad, was arrested in Angamaly by a special team led by Aluva DSP Baiju Paulose. Dhanesh studied agribusiness in Germany between 2015 and 2018 and returned to Kerala during the floods in 2018.
Dhanesh, a key link in the network, was based in Nanjangud, near Mysuru, according to the police. Police said he was running a drug network under the cover of agricultural ventures. He later started farming and other agricultural ventures, said an officer. Police said drugs were concealed inside banana bunches and transported to Kerala under the guise of carrying agricultural produce. Police said Dhanesh recruited young people to transport and distribute drugs in Bengaluru and nearby areas.
Police seized 803g of hashish oil and 8g of MDMA from his possession. Police, however, found that he allegedly used his agricultural activities as a cover for drug trafficking and distribution. His banana plantations and agricultural land in Nanjangud were reportedly used for the operation. Subsequently, Ernakulam Rural district police chief K S Sudarshan directed that the investigation be expanded to Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Based on the findings, Dhanesh was arrested in Angamaly. The drugs were then brought in bulk to Kerala and supplied to local dealers and consumers.
Investigators traced Dhanesh after examining the mobile phone of Harikrishnan, who was arrested in Aluva on Wednesday with 185g of MDMA.