Seven drug peddlers arrested in Coimbatore, 8kg ganja seized

Coimbatore: The city police busted a drug peddling racket and arrested a seven-member gang on Thursday. Police also seized 8kg of ganja from them. They were detained from Kavundampalayam on Wednesday, following a tip off.The arrested were identified as M Vinoth, 34, of Ashok Nagar near Kavundampalayam, R Vignesh, 26, of Saibaba Colony, R Rajesh, 24, of Kavundampalayam, M Ragu, 22, of Kovilmedu near Idaiyarpalayam, R Dhandapani, 18, of Kavundampalayam, K Dinesh, 19, of KK Pudur, and T Thennilavan, 24, of Velandipalayam.Police said the gang had procured the contraband from Odisha for 6,000 per kg and sold it in in the city for 50,000 per kg. "The gang had travelled to Odisha by train, where they procured more than 10 to 18kg of marijuana (ganja) at a very low cost. They wrapped the bundles containing ganja leaves with adhesive tapes and brought them to the city by train and sold it here for a higher cost," said Dr R Stalin, deputy commissioner of police (North), Coimbatore city. He added that the gang was engaged in ganja sales in the city for the last six months. Kavundampalayam police said the gang's leader Vinoth is already facing six cases, including one murder case, two ganja cases, and an extortion case. Rajesh and Vignesh are also facing murder charges. "Some of the gang members had befriended Vinoth when they pursued a certificate course at the ITI in Coimbatore. Vinoth had since engaged them in selling the contraband," Stalin said. Vinoth and Vignesh sustained fractures on their right leg while trying to escape from police, he added. They were remanded in judicial custody and further investigation is on.