International Drug Offender Among 5 Held; 213 kg Ganja Seized in Anakapalli

Police arrested five persons, including an alleged international drug trafficker with links to Sri Lanka, and seized 213.360 kg of ganja worth about ₹1.06 crore during a vehicle check on NH-16 near Lankelapalem Junction on Tuesday afternoon.

The operation was carried out by Parawada police based on specific intelligence inputs on interstate narcotics movement. Officials said the accused were part of an organised network involved in transporting ganja from agency areas of Andhra Pradesh to other States.

The accused have been identified as Shaik Ajmal Khan, Shaik Abdul Rehman, Tholam Durga Prasad, Kolleji Lova Prasad and Chetti Ravikumar, alias Nani.

According to police, Ajmal Khan, a native of Tamil Nadu, was earlier arrested in Sri Lanka in a major narcotics case involving methamphetamine and hashish oil. He had served a prison term between 2022 and 2025 and is suspected to have resumed drug trafficking activities after returning to India. Durga Prasad is said to have multiple prior NDPS cases, while Lova Prasad allegedly arranged the vehicle used for transporting the contraband.

Police recovered 213.360 kg of ganja, a car, a motorcycle, ₹95,240 in cash and four mobile phones from the accused.

The interception took place during routine surveillance conducted by Woman Sub-Inspector G.S.V. Mahalakshmi and her team. Preliminary findings suggest the network sourced ganja from agency areas and supplied it to other States.

Special teams have been formed to trace absconding members and map the wider network. The accused were produced before the XI Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Anakapalle, and remanded to judicial custody. Further investigation is in progress.