The Prohibition Enforcement Wing (PEW) personnel on Wednesday seized 1,392 bottles of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) smuggled from neighbouring Puducherry, fake labels and holograms of liquor brands and arrested 10 persons.
The names of the arrested were given as Balakrishnan, 38, Pandiyan, 36, Ranjith, 22, Shahul Hamid, 19, Anandaraj, 23, Balu, 53, Ajith Kumar, 24, Madan, 25, Ajith Kumar, 25, and Kannan, 28. The crime came to light when a team led by Inspector (PEW) Renuka Devi was conducting checks at Valathi check-post at the behest of Superintendent of Police S. Jayakumar when they intercepted three vehicles, including a mini van and seized 35 cartons of IMFL stocked in them. The team seized three vehicles and three motorcycles from them.
Mr. Jayakumar said the modus operandi of the accused was to smuggle IMFL from Puducherry. After removing the labels of brands sold in Puducherry, the bottles were fixed with fake labels and holograms and sold in shops or bars.
The police have intensified vigil across the PEW check-posts across the border and 1,68,119 bottles of IMFL were seized by the PEW personnel in 2019.