Ketamelon drugs expose: NCB files chargesheet; eye on UK, Australia links

Kochi: Narcotics control bureau (NCB) filed a chargesheet before the Ernakulam district sessions court in connection with the ‘Ketamelon' drugs case, in which the central agency busted a darknet-based drug trafficking racket. NCB's Cochin Zonal Unit on Monday submitted the chargesheet in one of the two cases registered in connection with the bust. NCB had then seized 1,127 suspected LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) blots, 131.66 grams of ketamine and crypto assets worth Rs 90 lakh in the operation titled ‘Melon' conducted in June. The darknet-based drug syndicate operated under the alias ‘Ketamelon'. NCB arrested two accused — Edison Babu, the alleged mastermind behind the trafficking, and his accomplice Arun Thomas — both hailing from Muvattupuzha. The chargesheet also arraigned two more accused. Sandeep Sajeev, a resident of Hull, United Kingdom hailing from North Paravoor, allegedly received deliveries of drugs, mainly LSD, orders for which Edison placed via the darknet. Sajeev repackaged it and then sent it to India. The other accused Harikrishnan Aji Nawas had Australian connections. He allegedly converted cryptocurrency Edison received into cash and then sent it to multiple accounts. NCB issued blue corner notices against Sajeev and Nawas to acquire more details from UK and Australian authorities. Meanwhile, Pradeep Bhai from Varanasi, who allegedly supplied ketamine to Edison, is still under the NCB lens. Edison is also accused of trafficking ketamine within India. NCB also attached assets of Edison worth over Rs 3 crore, including a shopping complex in Muvattupuzha valued at around Rs 85 lakh, cryptocurrency worth Rs 1.50 crore and another property in Idukki. The central agency had registered two cases in connection with the incident. The first case was in connection with the alleged seizure of drugs from three postal parcels on June 28. The second case was connected to the seizure of 847 more LSD blots and 131.66g of ketamine during a raid at Edison's residence. The chargesheet filed is in relation to the seizure from Edison's house. In a statement in July, NCB had said that investigations revealed that ‘Ketamelon' was India's only ‘level 4' darknet vendor — a top-tier status in India — operating actively over the past two years. The name derives from the vendor's early involvement in ketamine smuggling. Drugs were primarily sourced from a UK-based vendor, Gunga Din, a known reshipper of the globally infamous Dr Seuss, alias DS or Tribe Seuss, believed to be the largest LSD source in the world.