A special investigation squad of the Ernakulam Rural police on Saturday arrested a man who is allegedly the lynchpin of a racket smuggling ganja into Kerala.
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The arrested is Balorda Bonji Babu, 34, of Paderu in Andhra Pradesh. The squad formed by District Police Chief (Ernakulam Rural) K. Karthik arrested the accused from his hideout along the Maoist-infected Andhra Pradesh-Odisha border.
The police said the peddlers arrested with 225 kg of ganja in Angamaly last November worked for the accused. Subsequently, he had reportedly gone into hiding. The police team managed to nab him after months-long investigation while also staying in Paderu for days.
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The racket spearheaded by the accused had allegedly dispatched thousands of kilograms of ganja to various States. Ganja traders from Kerala reportedly transferred money to his account once the deal was finalised in Andhra Pradesh, said the police. The racket took the vehicles of buyers and then returned them packed with ganja at a pre-determined spot. Ganja bought at ₹2,000 to ₹3,000 a kg was sold in Kerala for many times that price, they added.
The Rural police have reportedly seized around 800 kg of ganja smuggled in this manner over the last 20 months.
The special squad led by Narcotic Cell Deputy Superintendent of Police P.P. Shams comprised Inspector Sony Mathai, Sub Inspector T.M. Soofy, Assistant Sub Inspector Anto, and senior civil police officers Rony Augustine, Jeemon George, Shyamkumar, and Prasad.