NIA seluths carrying out searches near Chennai
The NIA sleuths from Kerala are carrying out searches at a house in Thaiyur, Kelambakkam near Chennai on Friday in continuation with the raids at the Tiruchy special camp.
“House of a conduit of the Sri Lankan drug lords lodged in the camp was being searched. Information about him was gathered during earlier search operation,” NIA sources said.
NIA had conducted search operations on July 20 at 22 premises, including the special camp in Tiruchy, where foreign nationals with criminal backgrounds have been lodged, along with eight premises in Chennai and interrogated as many as 14 Sri Lankans for their suspected links with offenders involved in smuggling drugs and heavy arms.
During the earlier search, NIA team seized over 60 mobile phones and over 50 SIM cards along with a laptop and other digital devices.
NIA had registered a fresh case based on information collected during the probe into the case of the seizure of 300 kg heroin, five AK047 rifles and 1,000 live 9 mm ammunition from a Lankan boat off the coast of Vizhinjam harbour near Thiruvananthapuram in 2021, sources said.