In a major haul, Prohibition Enforcement Wing sleuths seized 5,250 bottles of Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) bottles that were stealthily stocked in a coconut farm near Thanipparai under Watrap police station limits on Saturday evening.
The police said that the contraband worth more than ₹5 lakh was kept in the motor room of the coconut grove belonging to Muthammal.
Based on intelligence input, a team of sleuths, led by Sub-Inspector of Police P. Ganesan, raided the farm around 5.30 p.m. and found that the carton boxes containing quarter and half bottles were stocked there.
The police have picked up one P. Manickam, 42, of Elanthaikulam in this connection.
The police suspect that a former supervisor of TASMAC shop is behind the crime. He could have used his influence to procure huge quantity of IMFL bottles from TASMAC shops to be sold in black market exploiting the lockdown conditions.
The government had instructed closure of all TASMAC shops during the COVID-19 lockdown between May 10 and 24.
A police source said that a quarter bottle that was worth ₹130 was being sold for as high as ₹500 and was in great demand in the black market.
