Property of youth arrested in drug trafficking case forfeited

It was in May 2024 that the Peruvannamuzhi native was arrested with smuggled drugs worth ₹2 crore

The police have forfeited movable and immovable properties illegally acquired by a 23-year-old man who was arrested in a major synthetic drug trafficking case in Kozhikode city. The forfeiture was made by the Vellayil police under Section 68 F (Seizure or freezing of illegally acquired property) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act-1985.

The seized properties mainly included a luxury motorcycle, which was reportedly purchased by the man using the money he had secured from drug trafficking and later registered in the name of his sister. Police sources said it was the first incident of forfeiture initiated by the Kozhikode City police, and that details of the case had been submitted to the Chennai-based Appellate Tribunal under the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act.

It was in May 2024 that Peruvannamuzhi native Albin Sebastian was nabbed with a commercial quantity of smuggled MDMA, LSD stamps and ecstasy drugs worth ₹2 crore from a rented house at Edakkad near Puthiyangadi. The police team led by inspector Baiju K. Jose had recovered 4,780 grams of MDMA, 80 LSD stamps, and a huge quantity of ecstasy tablets. Two of his close aides — Shine Shaji and Jumi Punnapra — had also been arrested in connection with the incident and remanded in judicial custody.

Police sources said Albin’s primarily targeted youngsters in Kozhikode city. He had joined a Bengaluru-based smugglers’ network after his four-month-long failed job hunt in Armenia. His family members were unaware of his return to the homeland and the secret stay in Kozhikode for the drug business, they said.

In an official communication issued here on Monday, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Narcotic Cell) K.A. Bose said the police were continuing with a slew of measures to identify and forfeit the illegally amassed properties of drug traffickers and their close aides. He added that the police squads were also in touch with the Excise squads and special investigation agencies from other States to make stronger interventions.

Published - November 18, 2024 09:26 pm IST