Photo Courtesy: nenews
Guwahati: Kerala police arrested Shafiqul Islam, 38, on July 16 as part of Operation Toofan. Officers caught the Assam native in Angamaly. The arrest followed a seizure of 609 grams of heroin from three migrant workers in the area. This haul marks the largest heroin recovery in the district.
A special team led by Ernakulam District Police Chief K.S. Sudarshan tracked the suspects. The trio transported the heroin from Assam by car. They hid the drugs in soap boxes and pouches inside secret compartments. Investigators identified Islam, a Nagaon district resident, as the mastermind. Local peddlers call him Dada.
Islam moved to Kerala ten years ago. He started in plywood factories but later shifted to scrap collection. Police claim he used the business to mask his narcotics trade. He moved frequently between rented houses in Ernakulam to dodge surveillance. His main base was in Perumbavoor.
Officers raided his Perumbavoor home. They found hundreds of empty bottles used for retail distribution. Financial records show transactions worth lakhs of rupees across multiple bank accounts. Islam lived a lavish lifestyle. He flew often between Kochi and Assam.
Police say he bought heroin in Assam for 30,000 rupees per box. He sold the same amount in Kerala for up to 100,000 rupees. He also sold smaller bottles for 1,000 rupees each. Investigators are still tracing the rest of the supply chain. Police said, "further investigation is underway to identify other members of the interstate drug trafficking network and trace its supply chain."
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