Abedio Solomon, a 29-year-old Nigerian national residing in Delhi, has been apprehended by the Eravipuram police following an investigation into the source of 90 gram of MDMA seized near Madannada Junction in Kollam city.
On the night of March 12, 2025, Shiju Khan, a resident of Pazhayattinkuzhi, was arrested with MDMA worth approximately ₹3.5 lakh in the market. Following this, District Police Chief (Kollam City) Kiran Narayanan formed a special team for further investigation. The subsequent investigation led to the arrest of Asam Khan, who provided financial assistance for the transaction, Mohammed Rasikh, who distributed the MDMA in Kollam, and Faisal, a native of Thiruvananthapuram, who facilitated the arrangements in Delhi.
During the interrogation of Faisal, the police team received crucial information regrading Abedio Solomon. The team, led by Eravipuram Station House Officer Rajeev and comprising senior civil police officers Sumesh, Sajin, and Shan Ali, and civil police officer Sumesh reached Delhi on March 27. An officer of the investigation team posed as a customer and requested 100 grams of MDMA. This helped the investigation team understand the modus operandi of the trade.
Via WhatsApp chat
The deal was to be finalised through WhatsApp chatting with a person named Francis residing in Nigeria. Solomon’s role was to distribute the MDMA in Delhi as per Francis’s instructions. As per Francis’s direction, Sajin, posing as a customer, requested 100 gram of MDMA and sent his photo. Francis then demanded ₹80,000 for the 100 gram. Upon confirming the money was ready, Francis asked for a video call to verify the cash. Sajin then showed a bundle of paper notes with ₹500 notes placed on the top and bottom during a video call from his hotel room. Subsequently, Francis sent Sajin a location in Delhi and instructed him to reach there with the money. When the police officer arrived at the location, Francis sent another location. When they reached this location, Solomon was present there.
Recognising the customer from the photo, Solomon demanded the money. At this point, SHO Rajeev and the team, who were waiting nearby, apprehended Solomon.
Resistance from local people
The location was a slum area which lacked vehicle access. Solomon’s Nigerian friends and local residents tried to obstruct the police team. Solomon also started screaming that he was being kidnapped. SHO Rajeev then brandished his firearm and showed his identity card to control the crowd. The arrested suspect was then taken in an autorickshaw to the nearby Uttam Nagar police station. The next day, the suspect was produced in a magistrate court in Delhi and a transit warrant was obtained to bring him to Kerala. During interrogation, he confessed that he had been living in Delhi for the past one and a half years and was distributing MDMA as per Francis’ instructions. He also revealed that Francis, who resides in Nigeria, directly dealt with customers to avoid leaving any evidence if caught and that they only dealt in cash, avoiding any bank transactions.
It was also found that Solomon’s passport and visa had expired three months ago.
Kollam ACP S. Sherif said that the remanded suspect would be taken into custody for further interrogation regarding the manufacturing of MDMA and to investigate if any other individuals are involved in the network.
Published – April 01, 2025 07:48 pm IST