The Excise Department has busted a drug racket that allegedly smuggled MDMA from Delhi to Kerala using women as carriers, and arrested four people in two operations, officials said on Sunday. A total of 279.3 grams of MDMA was seized from the accused, along with three grams of hashish oil, six mobile phones and Rs 69,500 in cash.
Officials said the racket was targeting young people for its operations. Joint Excise Commissioner S Vinod Kumar said the accused used a Mahindra Thar SUV to bring the contraband into Kerala and then sold it in smaller quantities.
Kumar said the Excise Ernakulam Range first arrested two people, including an 18-year-old woman, from a luxury hotel in Kaloor a few days ago and recovered 49.3 grams of MDMA from them. “Upon arresting and interrogating the two individuals, information was received regarding a person named Varun Dev, a wholesale dealer who traffics MDMA into Kerala. On getting information that they were coming to Ernakulam district on Saturday and that a deal was likely to take place, a search was conducted,” he told reporters.
Excise officials then intercepted a vehicle at Vyttila after it got caught in a traffic block on Saturday. Kumar said 230 grams of MDMA and three grams of hashish oil were recovered from a secret compartment built under the steering wheel. The two occupants of the vehicle, identified as Varun Dev, 35, and Vipin S Kumar, 30, both from Pathanamthitta district, were arrested.
“Thus, a total of four accused have been arrested by us now. Six mobile phones and Rs 69,500 in cash have also been recovered from their possession,” Kumar said. He also said one of the arrested persons had earlier been caught with drugs by the police.
Explaining the alleged method used by the group, Kumar said, “Their modus operandi involves travelling to Delhi in this Mahindra Thar SUV, using women as carriers to bring the contraband in the vehicle to Kerala, and then retailing it here. Among them, the most important thing to note is that the girl caught in the first case turns 19 years old only in November this year.”
He added, “So, they have a method of trapping young girls like this and using them for drug smuggling and drug trade. This is something that requires serious attention.”
Kumar said most youngsters caught in cases registered under the NDPS Act were unaware of the legal consequences. “For these commercial quantity cases, the law provides for imprisonment up to 20 years, with the minimum sentence being 10 years. So if convicted in this case, they will definitely receive a minimum sentence of 10 years. That can go up to a maximum of 20 years,” he said.
– Ends
Published By:
India Today Web Desk
Published On:
Aug 23, 2026 10:52 IST
