CHENNAI: In a major breakthrough during the end-hours of 2024, the Chennai police busted a methamphetamine manufacturing and peddling cartel by arresting 10 people and seizing 17.815kg of methamphetamine, valued at 22 crore in open market. Among the arrested is a Class X dropout, who is a meth cook convicted earlier in a ketamine smuggling case.
Besides seizing the high-value contraband from a godown in the suburban Red Hills area, the city Anti-Narcotics Intelligence Unit (ANIU) attached assets worth Rs 5 crore.
Police said the key suspect, Lakshmi Narasimhan, arrested by the ANIU team in Madurai, was preparing Methamphetamine on the terrace of a house in Virudhunagar since early this year. Although Narasimhan is a Class X dropout, he acquired the knowledge of preparing the synthetic drug with the help of his associates arrested in the Ketamine smuggling case.
The first to be arrested were Venkatesan alias Rajesh, and K Karthik, both hailing from Triplicane. When they were arrested at Madhavaram, the police team seized 1.5 kg of methamphetamine, two cars, and one two-wheeler from them, said an officer.
Following the leads provided by them, the ANIU team conducted searches at Venkatesan’s godown in Vadagarai near Red Hills and seized 15.9 kgs of Methamphetamine from him. During questioning, Venkatesan told police that he had earlier been sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment by the Patiala court in Punjab for smuggling synthetic drugs.
The ANIU, which has so far busted 50 synthetic drug networks, then trailed the network and arrested Venkatesan’s relative Prabhu of Kodungaiyur, and Shanmugam of Urapakkam. The duo smuggled the raw material Pseudoephedrine from Haryana and Myanmar via Manipur to prepare Methamphetamine.
Based on the statements of Prabhu and Shanmugam, the ANIU team arrested Sahul Hameed and Lawrence, and seized 128 grams of methamphetamine. The police team confiscated immovable assets worth Rs 5 crore bought by Hameed and Lawrence.
“Further investigations revealed Venkatesan’s associates Sarathkumar and his wife Javesa Merida from Chennai, and the cops seized 157 gram of methamphetamine from the couple,” said a police officer.
Probe confirmed that Lakshmi Narasimhan and Murugan were preparing Methamphetamine from a home-laboratory set up in Virudhunagar. Police seized 150 gram of methamphetamine from the duo.
Altogether, the ANIU team arrested all 10 suspects, and the cops seized 17.815 kg of methamphetamine and assets worth Rs 22 crore. The arrested 10 suspects were later remanded in judicial custody.
