Ganja smugglers’ highway escape ends in tragedy; 1 dead, 26kg contraband seized near Vijayawada

Vijayawada: What began as an alleged interstate ganja smuggling operation ended in a crash, a death, and a major drug seizure on the city’s outskirts.According to Nunna police, five men from Madurai in Tamil Nadu travelled to Visakhapatnam on June 12 in a car. Investigators said they purchased around 30kg of ganja in the Agency areas near Visakhapatnam and packed the contraband into smaller packets to smuggle it to Tamil Nadu.

The drugs were allegedly concealed in three bags and loaded into the car's boot.On the afternoon of June 15, while travelling along the Vijayawada West bypass, the vehicle reportedly rammed into a stationary truck near a milestone opposite a hotel at around 3.30pm. The impact left the occupants seriously injured, and the victims were shifted to hospital.The case took a dramatic turn when police reached the accident site.

During an inspection, officers noticed two injured men with head bandages attempting to take out the bags from the damaged car and flee. Their suspicious behaviour prompted police to stop and question them. A search of the bags led to the recovery of 26kg of ganja.Further investigation revealed that two other occupants allegedly escaped from the scene with another bag containing the contraband. One of the accused, Surya, succumbed to severe injuries while undergoing treatment at the govt general hospital in Vijayawada.

Police arrested Hari Vignesh Thanapal and Shanmuga Raja alias Manikandan, both residents of Madurai. Efforts are underway to trace the absconding accused, identified as Harish and Sikander. A case has been registered under relevant sections of the NDPS Act, and further investigation is underway.The incident has exposed yet another interstate drug trafficking route passing through Andhra Pradesh.