Award-winning Kerala farmer arrested for allegedly smuggling drugs hidden in banana bunches

Aluva, Ernakulam: A 31-year-old man, who was once honoured by the Kerala government as its best young farmer, has been arrested for allegedly smuggling large quantities of narcotics, including MDMA, into the state concealed among banana bunches transported by trucks from Bengaluru.

The accused has been identified as Dhanesh S Nair, alias Dani, of Parayil House in Viyyapuram village of Haripad. He was arrested in Angamaly following an investigation into a drug seizure in Aluva.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Baiju Paulose, who led the operation, said Dhanesh was a key link in a drug distribution network operating in the Bengaluru-Mysuru region and supplying narcotics to Kerala.

Police seized 803 grams of hashish oil and eight grams of MDMA from him. Dhanesh was living in Nanjangud, near Mysuru, where he was also engaged in several farming activities, including banana cultivation.

Investigators traced him after examining the mobile phone of Harikrishnan, who was arrested from a lodge in Aluva recently with 185 grams of MDMA.

Acting on information obtained from Harikrishnan, police, in coordination with the Kochi City Police, also arrested Shinu Sebastian from Thoppumpady with seven grams of MDMA.

The investigation found that Harikrishnan and Shinu Sebastian distributed drugs on the instructions of Dhanesh, who was known as ‘Dani Bhai’ and communicated with them through Instagram. The two allegedly delivered narcotics to customers and collected the payments before handing the money over to Dhanesh.

Farmer’s identity allegedly used as cover for drug trade

Dhanesh had studied agribusiness in Germany between 2015 and 2018 and returned to Kerala during the 2018 floods. He subsequently took up farming and launched various agricultural ventures.

In 2023, he received the Kerala government’s award for the best young farmer. However, investigators now suspect that he used his agricultural activities as a cover for drug smuggling and distribution.

Police said his banana plantations and other farms in Nanjanagudu, near Mysuru, were allegedly used as part of the operation. The suspected method involved concealing narcotics among agricultural produce being transported to Kerala.

Dhanesh allegedly recruited young people for drug trafficking and distribution and brought them to Bengaluru and nearby areas to carry out the operations.

Investigators also recovered videos and other visuals from the accused persons’ mobile phones that allegedly showed methods of concealing drugs inside banana bunches for transportation.

Police are continuing the investigation into the network and its links.