Chennai police have arrested three individuals involved in a large-scale ketamine smuggling operation, seizing 38kg of the drug worth Rs3.5 crore. The suspects—Ravi (47), Ganesh (50), and Madhan (45)—were arrested following a tip-off from the Anti-Narcotic Intelligence Unit (ANIU).
Ravi and Ganesh, both residents of Vyasarpadi, and Madhan, from Tiruvallur, are Burma repatriates who settled in Chennai and the surrounding areas. Ravi has a criminal history, with involvement in over 25 red sanders smuggling cases in Andhra Pradesh, according to police reports.
The investigation revealed that the trio had connections with illegal drug factories operating in the hilly regions of Manipur, where synthetic drugs, including ketamine, are produced. Through these connections, they arranged to have the drugs couriered from Andhra Pradesh to Chennai via trucks and buses.
The police apprehended the men while they were in possession of the ketamine. Further investigation linked them to Viswanathan, a 45-year-old from Ongole, Andhra Pradesh, who was arrested on October 24 with 1kg of methamphetamine. Police later used Viswanathan as part of a sting operation, posing as buyers and coordinating the drug exchange. The trio was apprehended at the Madhavaram bus terminus after a brief chase.
All three men have been remanded in judicial custody, and authorities are continuing to investigate their ties to broader drug networks.