Madurai duo held with 102 kg ganja in major drug bust near Chennai

CHENNAI: A mega ganja trafficking plot was foiled by the city police who seized 102 kg of the contraband from two individuals on Thursday. The crackdown was based on a tip-off from an Andhra Pradesh-based informant, leading to the bust near Maduravoyal Bypass Road in Anakaputhur from a Karnataka-registered car (KA 01 MD 2866).

The accused were Paraman (45) and Daniel Raja (34), both from Madurai. Paraman has a long criminal record of drug trafficking and violent crimes, including theft, rioting, assault, and criminal intimidation across Madurai and neighbouring districts.

Hailing from Usilampatti, Daniel also had an NDPS case registered against him in Tirumangalam earlier this year.

Probe revealed Paraman's deep ties in interstate drug networks. Credits to his initial career in Andhra Pradesh, a murukku business, he was fluent in Telugu and began trafficking ganja in 2019.

He connected with Andhra-based dealers Nagaraj and Najeem from Narasipattinam, while he was jailed in Visakhapatnam after being arrested with 10 kg ganja during the 2024 Assembly elections in Nellore.

Post his release in May 2024, he resumed operations, partnering with Daniel to procure a Honda City car from Tirupur. The duo took multiple trips to Narasipattinam to smuggle ganja parcels by hiding them in the car.

In December 2024, the duo bought 26 parcels (52 kg) for Rs 2 lakh and sold them in Usilampatti's hilly terrain. In January, they acquired 45 parcels (90 kg) for Rs 4 lakh from Najeem. In the latest rendezvous leading to their arrest, they procured 51 parcels (102 kg) for Rs 8 lakh.

A senior officer stated, "This syndicate exploited the Andhra-Tamil Nadu corridor, using hilly areas as storage hubs. Paraman’s network expanded through jail contacts, highlighting organized crime linkages." The police are now probing further to trace upstream suppliers and local distributors.