Kasaragod: Two months after Kasaragod Police arrested four people, including two women, with 100 gm of MDMA, they have tracked down the alleged supplier — a man who masked his operations behind a Thailand mobile number — from Kushalnagar in Karnataka’s Kodagu district.

The arrested man has been identified as Pallul Abid (37) of Halugunda village in Kodagu district. Once he realised the police were on his trail, he dumped his phone and SIM card and went off the grid. "We picked him up from his wife’s house in Kushalnagar," said Inspector Sunumon K, Adhur Station House Officer, who is investigating the case.

According to the police, Abid is the elusive MDMA supplier for several peddlers operating in Kasaragod and the rest of Kerala. "Once his accomplice receives the payment, Abid would text the drug location to the peddlers using a Thailand number,” said Sunumon. He said the pickup points were often in Bengaluru.

On January 13, Kasaragod Police intercepted an SUV at Iriyanni, en route from Bengaluru, and arrested Mohammed Sahad (26) of Mastikundu in Muliyar panchayat; Shanavas P M (42) and his wife Shareefa (40) from Vidyanagar, Kasaragod town; and Shuhaiba P M (38), Shanavas’s sister, from Chattanchal in Chemnad panchayat.

Police seized 100 gm of MDMA, a synthetic party drug known for its stimulant and hallucinogenic properties. All four remain in judicial custody as psychotropic drugs above 10 gm are considered commercial quantities attracting up to 20 years in prison.

Investigators turned their focus on Sahad, who runs juice shops in Kochi and Bengaluru and had previously been arrested with MDMA.

Two days before his arrest, Sahad transferred Rs 90,000 to Abdul Khader's bank account in Uppala. "Soon after, Sahad’s phone received a location in Bengaluru from a Thailand number," said Sunumon.

Adhur police arrested Abdul Khader (27), making him the fifth accused. Khader, the Inspector said, admitted to coordinating an illegal liquor delivery business in Dubai, sitting in Kasaragod, for a commission of 10 to 20 per cent. Scrutiny of his bank records led police to Abid.

"Abid never reveals his identity. He operates through fake social media profiles and internet calling apps," the officer said. The District Anti-Narcotics Special Action Force (DANSAF) obtained Internet Protocol Detail Records (IPDR) and login data from his social media accounts, eventually unmasking his real identity. "Soon after, he went into hiding," Sunumon said.

Some old-fashioned police work helped trace Abid to Kushalnagar. Police say he is already facing charges for supplying marijuana and MDMA in Bengaluru. "He is a key link in the supply chain bringing drugs into Kerala," said Inspector Sunumon.

The investigation team included sub-inspector Vinod Kumar K, assistant sub-inspectors Sunil Abraham, Ajayakumar P V, and civil police officers Sreejith M, and Uthesh T.