The intensified search carried out on the basis of hotspot analysis reports and surveillance in the wake of school reopening has helped the District Anti-Narcotics Special Action Force (DANSAF) nab four drug pushers who were allegedly involved in inter-State smuggling of MDMA in commercial quantity.
Police officers heading the special enforcement squads say the checking drive that helped them seize around 500 grams of MDMA in just three days would continue in the district to crack down on invisible hands behind the growing illegal business.
The bank accounts of all the recently arrested suspects in various drug trafficking cases will be examined further for gathering more information on suspicious financial transactions. The police hope that they can retrieve details of more suspects who colluded with commercial quantity dealers to flourish in the secret sales network.
Call detail record (CDR) analysis is also in progress to zero in on the hidden local network of drug pushers and regular purchasers around the 25 already identified hotspots. The details of nearly 700 persons who were arrested in the last five months from north Kerala are with the special squads now to make further headway in the area.
“What we plan is a continuous checking drive with focus on the already identified hotspots. Seizure of more commercial quantity is a big achievement in the area,” said Prakasan Padannayil, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Narcotics Cell). He added that the banking details of the arrested in the latest drug trafficking cases would be gathered soon for detailed analysis as recommended by the higher authorities.
Arrangements are also in place to conduct flash inspections on national and State highways covering inter-State goods carriers and buses. The support of various local police stations will be sought to coordinate flash searches at suspected locations. Light motor vehicles too will be examined with the support of the highway patrol squad on district borders.
