INDIALEAD

TN: NCB arrests couple with 3kg hashish bound for Sri Lanka

Chennai, Aug 24 (IANS) The Narcotics Control Bureau’s (NCB) Chennai Zonal Unit has arrested a couple after allegedly seizing three kilograms of hashish meant to be trafficked to Sri Lanka. The contraband is estimated to be worth Rs 75 lakh.

The arrested persons have been identified as Sivagamisundari and her husband Gurumurthy. According to the NCB, Sivagamisundari was a close associate of Angoda Lokka, the deceased Sri Lankan gangster allegedly involved in organised crime and international drug trafficking.

Acting on specific information about the movement of the narcotic substance, an NCB team intercepted the couple near the Porur toll plaza in Chennai earlier this week. A search allegedly led to the recovery of three kilograms of hashish from their possession. Preliminary investigation indicated that the consignment was intended to be transported to Sri Lanka.

The agency said the seizure was significant in view of Sivagamisundari’s alleged links to Angoda Lokka and his criminal network. She had previously been arrested by the Tamil Nadu Police’s Crime Branch‑Criminal Investigation Department in connection with a case registered in 2020. That case pertained to the alleged fabrication of identity documents and other supporting records for Angoda Lokka, enabling him to stay illegally in India. Lokka, who had reportedly been living under a false identity in Coimbatore, died in 2020. His death and suspected criminal operations in the State subsequently led to an extensive investigation by the CBCID.

The NCB said the latest arrest involved a person with an established association with a Sri Lankan organised crime and drug‑trafficking network. Investigators are now attempting to trace the source of the seized hashish and identify its intended recipients in Sri Lanka. They are also examining whether a wider transnational trafficking network was involved in procuring and transporting the contraband.

Since the beginning of 2026, the NCB’s Chennai unit has seized approximately 2,916.4 kilograms of ganja, 77.7 kilograms of hashish oil, 1.8 kilograms of amphetamine, 13 kilograms of hashish and 2,799 LSD blots. The agency has arrested 48 people in connection with various narcotics cases during this period. The combined estimated value of the drugs seized by the unit so far this year is around Rs 27.80 crore.

–IANS

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