Banana farming by day, MDMA trafficking by night: ‘Dani Bhai ’, key accused in drug racket, arrested

ALUVA: A key member of a network trafficking large quantities of MDMA from Bengaluru to Kerala has been arrested in Angamaly. The accused, identified as Dhanesh S. Nair (31), alias ‘Dani’, of Payippad, Haripad, who resides in Nanjangud, Mysuru, was a recipient of the state government's award for the best young farmer. The arrest was made by a police team led by Aluva Deputy Superintendent of Police Baiju Paulose. A total of 803 grams of hashish oil and eight grams of MDMA were seized from him.

Dhanesh received the state government's award for the best young farmer in 2023. He owns banana plantations and agricultural land in Nanjangud. He allegedly used the banana bunches harvested from these farms to conceal narcotic substances and transport them to distributors in various parts of Kerala.

Investigators traced Dhanesh through the mobile phone of Harikrishnan, who was arrested in Aluva on Sunday with 185 grams of MDMA. Shinu Sebastian, who was arrested in Thoppumpady with seven grams of MDMA, was also traced based on information obtained from Harikrishnan. Both Harikrishnan and Shinu distributed drugs according to instructions sent by Dhanesh through Instagram and handed over the proceeds to him.

Angamaly Inspector R. Rupesh, Nedumbassery Inspector B.K. Arun and Sub-Inspectors Jojo George and V. Anoop are also part of the investigation team.

Studied agribusiness in Germany

Dhanesh studied agribusiness in Germany from 2015 to 2018 and returned to Kerala during the 2018 floods. He subsequently launched agricultural ventures both within and outside the state. Videos explaining drug-smuggling methods, including concealing narcotics inside banana bunches, were recovered from his mobile phones. The investigation team has also obtained further information about the drug-trafficking network operating through social media.