With Inputs from Stephan Kayyar
Daijiworld Media Network - Kasargod/Bangalore
Kasargod/Bangalore, May 4: Four days after officials of the narcotics cell and the Kasargod police seized 50 kg of ganja from a car at Mogral-Puttur here after a hot chase, it has now come to light that the car was stolen from a Bangalore-based software engineer, who the accused had robbed.
Joy Joseph, a resident of Idukki was arrested while his accomplice Rojas managed to escape.
File Photos
A gang of six had robbed software engineer Satish Kumar alias Sujith, a resident of Subash Chandra Road, Vidyaranyapura in Bangalore on April 12, and beaten him up before robbing his Swift car along with other valuables.
Satish, who works as a software engineer in a private firm in the Kalyani Tech Park near Maratahalli, was returning home when the incident took place. Sujith slowed down his car near BEL market to negotiate speed breaker, when three youths riding a motorcycle hit his car from behind.
The gang was soon joined by three others who allegedly attacked him with a beer bottle and escaped with his car, leaving behind the injured Satish.
On April 30, the narcotics cell, acting on prior information about the stolen car transporting ganja, chased the vehicle with the help of Kasargod police and arrested Joy Joseph near a railway track at Mogral Puttur. His accomplice Rojas, who was driving the car, escaped.
It is said that Rojas (26), who is yet to be caught, faces attempt-to-murder case for assaulting Sujith. He is also accused in a rape case in Kannur district. Sources said that he gets Rs 30,000 each drug deal.
Absconding accused Rojas
The Kasargod police who seized the car contacted Sujith, based on the car registration details for verification. Sujith later informed the Gangammanagudi police, who contacted their Kasargod counterparts and got the pictures of the seized vehicle and the accused, which were confirmed by Sujith.
Speaking to daijiworld, narcotics cell DySP Suresh Babu said that the car was in the name of Mamatha Nair, wife of Sandeep Nair.
Investigation has reportedly revealed that the gang members are habitual drug peddlers and used to go to Bangalore regularly to collect ganja from their contacts who get it from Odisha. The gang collects the drugs and distributes it to their customers in Kerala, sources said.
A team of police from Gangammanagudi had gone to Kasargod for further investigations, a senior police officer said.
Anyone with information about the whereabouts of Rojas is requested to contact narcotics cell DySP Suresh Babu on 09497990144.