CHENNAI: An MSc chemistry student and four robotics engineering graduates teamed up with two others to cook methamphetamine in one of their homes in Kodungaiyur. And when police came knocking on Wednesday, the parents said they thought the students were doing academic research. The seven have been arrested and remanded in judicial custody.
The city’s newly formed Anti-Drug Intelligence Unit (ADIU) raided the meth lab and seized 250g of meth, two mobile phones, a chemical weighing machine, lab equipment, jars, test tubes, pipettes, burettes, raw chemicals stored in glass jars, and other apparatus.
Police suspect the criminal network has links in other cities. The arrested individuals were identified as Fleming Francis, 21; Naveen, 22; Pravin Pranav, 21: Kishore, 21; Gnanapandian, 22; Arunkumar, 22; and Dhanush, 23. Gnanapandian is an MSc Chemistry student, while Pravin, Kishore, Naveen, and Dhanush had recently graduated with degrees in robotics engineering. The other three are their friends.
An ADIU team has been tracking peddlers selling synthetic drugs in the city. “We are investigating how long they have been in operation. While Gnanapandian has knowledge of chemistry, the others procured chemicals and apparatus from pharmaceutical firms and online portals,” said a police officer.