Sri Lankan drug peddler held

[karthika]

Sri Lankan drug peddler held
S. Vijay Kumar
He had evaded arrest for many years

CHENNAI: In a swift pre-dawn operation here on Saturday, sleuths of
the Narcotics Control Bureau arrested a drug peddler who was evading
arrest for many years.

Chellappa Saguneswaran, 42, of Vavunia in Sri Lanka, was picked up
from a lodge at Periamet.

Narcotics seized

NCB sources said the police intercepted Shanmuganathan of Colombo at
the Chennai international airport on Friday night when he was about to
board a plane to Sri Lanka.

A search of his baggage brought out 750 gram of heroin concealed in an
oven and electric cooker.

Enquiries revealed that Shanmuganathan had no knowledge of the drug
being stuffed in the baggage, and that he had only agreed to hand over
the materials given by his friend, Saguneswaran, to a family in
Colombo.

Based on the inputs given by the passenger, an NCB team launched a
hunt for the suspect in Chennai and neighbouring districts.

Taking its cue from the mobile phone communication and tower location,
the team raided hotels in suspected areas.

At about 2 a.m., the police found Saguneswaran in a lodge at Periamet.
He was in possession of another 750 gram of heroin. He confessed that
on August 14, he smuggled to Sri Lanka 2 kg of heroin, with the help
of an agent in Tuticorin.

“Saguneswaran is a big time drug peddler who was formerly a teacher in
a school at Vavuniya. Though he was into drug business for years, he
managed to keep his identity and movements secret. Investigations are
on to find out the source and supply network of the contraband,” NCB
South Zonal Director S. Davidson Devasirvatham told The Hindu.

Possible links with LTTE

The suspect was using carriers who had no knowledge that they were
transporting drugs.

The NCB was investigating the possibility of Saguneswaran’s links with
the banned Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the sources said.

[Lokku Banda]

On Aug 24, 6:50 am, karthika <mud...@sympatico.ca> wrote:
> Sri Lankan drug peddler held
> S. Vijay Kumar
> He had evaded arrest for many years
>
> CHENNAI: In a swift pre-dawn operation here on Saturday, sleuths of
> the Narcotics Control Bureau arrested a drug peddler who was evading
> arrest for many years.
>

He was Korthiga's supplier until his arrest !