Chennai: The Greater Chennai Police have launched a crackdown on prominent bars and star hotels in the city following intelligence inputs indicating that some establishments were supplying cocaine to customers.
A special team from the Chennai Police’s Anti-Narcotics Intelligence Unit (ANIU) has been constituted to lead the operation. So far, the police have arrested 18 people, including bar managers and DJs.
During interrogation, the arrested individuals revealed that a Nigerian national, Eko Nathanial Chibuzor, was supplying cocaine to various bars in Chennai.
Chibuzor was arrested in a hideout in Mumbai Wednesday. He is being brought to Chennathis day and will be produced before a magistrate court.
Sources within the special police team stated that further crackdowns would be conducted starting today, with City Police Commissioner M. Arun personally overseeing the operations. The police have so far recovered 60 grams of cocaine,1.7 kg of ganja, 2 grams of ganja oil, 4 grams of OG ganja,16 mobile phones, three two-wheelers, three cars and two weighing machines from the arrested.
An official statement from the Chennai Police Wednesday confirmed that ANIU teams have been monitoring bars, pubs, and star hotels to detect and curb illegal activities. Noting that 18 arrests have been made since the first one January 25, the police have issued warnings to bar and hotel management, cautioning them against engaging in illegal activities.
The Tamil Nadu Police have also intensified their crackdown on the trafficking and use of methamphetamine, launching statewide operations to curb its spread.
The enforcement drive follows a series of arrests across urban and rural areas, where individuals were caught attempting to sell the highly addictive drug — even to school students. In response, Director
General of Police (DGP) Sankar Jiwal has directed all district police superintendents to form and personally oversee special squads targeting drug networks.
Law enforcement agencies are also closely monitoring gyms and health clubs, where methamphetamine use has reportedly become a growing concern. Recent arrests indicate that several gym users were obtaining the drug to manage muscle pain caused by intense workouts. T
Tamil Nadu has emerged as a major transit hub for international drug syndicates smuggling methamphetamine and its precursor, pseudoephedrine, to countries such as Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Australia, where demand is high.
In 2024 alone, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized methamphetamine worth approximately Rs 380 crore. Authorities believe that the drugs were sourced from Myanmar and were being trafficked to Sri Lanka. In November 2024, Chennai Police arrested a Nigerian national, Philip, suspected of being the mastermind behind a major smuggling cartel. Philip allegedly facilitated the import of methamphetamine from Nigeria using courier and air routes.
IANS