Kerala drug trend: Cartels using women, minor girls as ‘family’ front to smuggle ganja, MDMA

Kottayam (Kerala): Investigators have uncovered a worrying trend across the state, with drug trafficking mafias increasingly deploying women and minor girls as couriers to smuggle cannabis and synthetic drugs. Authorities note that since the launch of 'Operation Toofan', a targeted crackdown on narcotics, an escalating number of women are being caught with contraband.

To evade suspicion at checkpoints and on trains, syndicates set up travel arrangements that mimic ordinary families on vacation. Sources in the Police and Excise Departments reveal that Odisha has emerged as the primary source hub for these consignments. Strikingly, interrogation of arrested peddlers has revealed that major suppliers in Odisha now mandate the presence of women or minor girls before they will hand over contraband to buyers.

This operating method was highlighted following a recent raid in Manimala, where police seized over 4.5 kilograms of ganja from a residence. A married couple was arrested in connection with the haul. The Excise Department later gathered intelligence indicating that a minor girl had accompanied the suspects on their supply run to Odisha. The prime accused, identified as Pius, had been under close surveillance after investigators collected evidence showing he had executed multiple smuggling trips using women and young girls as cover. Pius was previously arrested by the Kottayam East Police in a separate cannabis case.

In another recent operation in Manarkad, the Excise Department interrogated three women—including the wife and relatives of a prime suspect—following the seizure of cannabis and cultivated ganja plants from a house. The suspect, a native of Idukki, had been leasing a house in Manarkad to run a drug distribution network while living there with the women. During questioning, the wife admitted she was fully aware of her husband's illicit drug trade, which spanned over a decade.

Similarly, during an MDMA seizure at a house at Chengalam here, investigators established the direct involvement of the prime accused's wife. Financial tracking revealed that the proceeds from the synthetic drug sales were being systematically routed into her personal bank account, leading to her swift arrest by the Excise Department.

Beyond cannabis smuggling from eastern states, Excise officials have also recorded a sharp spike in the number of young women smuggling MDMA from Bengaluru into Kerala. Probes suggest that dedicated recruitment networks lure vulnerable young women into the trade. Driven by promises of easy money and exorbitant payouts, an increasing number of women are willingly becoming links in the supply chain of these major drug cartels.