Sand mining racket busted, kingpin held

Veeravanallur police busted a sand mining racket in Ambasamudram and Kallidaikurichi and arrested the kingpin on Wednesday.

Police sources said a patrol team led by Inspector Samson raided areas near Vandalodai, about 10 km from Palayamkottai-Papanasam Highway, following information about illicit sand mining activity. The team found a group of people loading sand on a tractor from a dry stream bed without a valid pass.

Questioned, they said they were acting on the instruction of John Peter, 32, of Pottal. As the police team was proceeding to Pottal, John Peter reportedly called Mr. Samson over the phone and asked him to release the tractor. He was detained.

“John Peter introduced himself as reporter of a Tamil TV news channel and threatened the police with serious consequences including losing their job,” said a police officer attached to Special Branch.

Unmindful of it, the police team arrested him and his accomplice, who were involved in illicit sand mining in Kallidaikurichi, Ambasamudram and Vickramasingapuram for a long time with the alleged connivance of some revenue and police officials, the officer added. “When they stepped out of their ‘haven’ in a bid to expand their area of operation, they were nabbed.”

A probe into the role of their role in smuggling of stones from five quarries in Ambasamudram and Cheranmahadevi taluks was on. The police team was also pursuing a lead about the gang’s smuggling of ration rice into Kerala.

“The gang, with the help of another man, who claims to be reporter of a TV news channel, has been smuggling ration rice for the past five years with the help of officials and a woman employee in a ration shop,” said another police officer from Ambasamudram Sub-Division.

“When we detained a few ration rice smugglers, they said they were getting the stock from the ‘reporter’ since 2014 to be sold in Kerala for a premium after polishing it in a rice mill,” the officer added.

Police said the key accused, John Peter, was arrested and booked under IPC Section 379 (sand theft) following a complaint from village administrative officer S. Balamurugan of Malaiyankulam. The tractor and trailer were impounded.