Tamil Nadu: 50 Kg Ephedrine worth Rs 3 crore seized, 2 arrested

Chennai: A Chennai team of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) seized 50 kg of Ephedrine, a banned substance, worth Rs 3 crores at Chennai Central, in the early hours of Sunday. Two persons were nabbed. They have been identified as Thamin Basha, 34 and Sate, 31, both hailing from Tambaram. They have been arrested by NCB with the help of Railway police.

NCB seized 50 kg of Ephedrine, which was concealed in as many as 12 packets of a popular food product. The value of the seized contraband is Rs 3 crores in the international market, according to NCB officials.

An official attached to NCB, Chennai Zone said, “NCB arrested 2 smugglers from Mizoram in June. On interrogating them, they disclosed the modus operandi of the gang. On the basis of the information, a dedicated team kept a watch on suspicious persons”.

The officials waited to catch the perpetrators red-handed. “Due to lack of valid evidence, we waited and meticulously followed the suspicious persons, based on specific information. We arrested them after they boarded a train. The seized drug was headed to Malaysia through Kolkata. Further interrogation will be conducted to nab all the gang members”, the official added.

Ephedrine is a much sought after drug in Malaysia and other South Asian countries, as it is the most important precursor to manufacture Methamphetamine, a widely used party drug. In a press release, NCB said that the huge demand for Ephedrine led to the increased attempts to smuggle it through various routes. There has been a recent instance of Ephedrine seizure at the Cochin International Airport, which was booked to a fictitious address of Chennai. Further investigations are underway on that, the release said.