23g heroin seized from Perumbavoor lodge; 5 taken into custody

Kochi: In a major anti-drug operation, excise department seized 23.42g of heroin stored in 240 small containers from a lodge in Perumbavoor.Five migrant labourers were taken into custody. Authorities registered a case under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.The contraband was recovered from a lodge on P P Road on Wednesday that was rented by Naushad Alam, 27, of Assam. According to excise officials, CCTV footage showed the suspect leaving the premises before the inspection began.Preliminary investigations suggest the seized heroin was intended for local distribution, mainly targeting the migrant worker population and youth in the area.Excise inspector S Binu said the accused checked into the lodge on Tuesday and previously stayed there on other occasions as well. Efforts are under way to trace and apprehend the absconding suspect.The raid was carried out as part of ‘Operation Thunder’, a special drive launched by excise department to crack down on drug trafficking.Man held with 3.07kg of ganja: A 31-year-old man from West Bengal was arrested by city police after being found in possession of 3.07kg of ganja near Kunnumpuram in Perumbavoor on Wednesday.The accused was identified as Anwar Hussain, 31, of Paikpara in Barakar, West Bengal.The arrest was made as part of Operation Toofan, a special anti-narcotics drive conducted under the ‘Narcotic Cell Hunting’ initiative. Acting on a tip-off received by city police commissioner Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar IPS, a team of district anti-narcotic special action force (Dansaf), led by narcotic cell assistant commissioner T D. Sunilkumar, arrested the accused and seized the contraband.1.3g of heroin sized: Police arrested a woman from Assam and excise seized 1.3g of heroin from Perumbavoor. The arrested was identified as Shahida Khatoon, 25, of Nagoon.“A single bottle was sold for Rs 1,000. We are probing the drug supply chain,” an officer said.