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Online racket in drugs busted

V.S. Palaniappan and S. Vijay Kumar

Coimbatore-based firm exported them to US, UK
Drugs listed under Schedule-I of NDPS Act

COIMBATORE/MADURAI: In a significant breakthrough, Narcotics Control Bureau sleuths on Saturday busted an unlicensed drug racket in Coimbatore that had been allegedly exporting drugs/psychotropic substances using online contacts to various countries since 2005.

Acting on a tip-off from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), United States, a team led by the NCB Director (South Zone), S. Davidson Devasirvatham, conducted a storming operation on the branch office of a New York-based company at Peelamedupudur that was engaged in online drug trading.

Company president T. Seethapathy settled in New York, was under the scanner of the DEA. Branch Manager D. Ramakrishnan was taken into custody.

According to NCB sources, the modus operandi of the suspects was to obtain orders for drugs from foreigners, mostly in the US, United Kingdom and some European countries.

The bulk orders would be sourced from two pharmacies in Coimbatore without prescriptions. The well-packed drugs would be sent to respective destinations as airmail parcels.

“The trade did not have the approval of the Narcotics Commissioner, Gwalior. It is also in violation of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act and rules. The drugs included those listed under Schedule-I of the NDPS Act,” Mr. Davidson told The Hindu.

The company had registered with the Reserve Bank of India for trading in consumer items, whereas it was trading in drugs.

The credit card swipes for transactions made through a website were routed through a bank account in Coimbatore. The firm registered a turnover of over Rs. 2 crore.

NCB officials are trying to identify the supply and distribution channel, besides gathering information on “beneficiaries” residing overseas. After securing the drugs locally, the firm used to sell them at 300-400 per cent profit, investigators perusing the transaction particulars pointed out.

Not clear

It is not clear how the suspects managed to get the airmail parcels cleared by the Customs at the Chennai and Mumbai international airports. The consignments were usually booked at the Railway Mail Service and Speedpost Centre, Coimbatore. Some common drugs exported were ‘Alprazolam,’ ‘Ativan’ and ‘Nitrosun.’

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