Kottayam natives arrested with drugs amid bid to rescue excise officer abducted by gang

Walayar: In a daring incident, a gang of drug peddlers tried to abduct an excise officer in a car while he was inspecting vehicles in the border town of Walayar in Kerala's Palakkad district. But the excise officer managed to escape after the car sped away along the national highway for nearly 2.5km. Two people linked to the gang were arrested.

P Subin, a civil excise officer of the Kerala excise squad, sustained injuries to his hands and legs after being beaten up by the gang. The incident happened around Walayar toll plaza around 10.50pm on Thursday.

Subin approached the car while carrying out vehicle inspections. After finding cannabis hidden below the car seat, he called out to the officers who were inspecting other vehicles nearby. But the gang dragged Subin into the car and sped away. Subin eventually managed to jump out of the car and escaped near Attappallam.

Meanwhile, the excise vehicle chased the car for several kilometres till Elappully. But when the excise vehicle got stuck behind a lorry, the car gave them the slip and fled through a bylane. But anticipating checks ahead, the gang threw away the sacks of cannabis in front of the houses along the way and fled to Tamil Nadu.

But the excise intercepted another car of the same gang and seized 11.60kg of cannabis. Kottayam natives Fadil Nisar, 29, and Jacob Philip, 30, were also arrested.