Hybrid ganja case: Actors Shine Tom Chacko, Sreenath Bhasi appear before Excise team for questioning

Actors Shine Tom Chacko and Sreenath Bhasi questioned by Excise team in drug seizure case involving model Sowmya.

Actors Shine Tom Chacko and Sreenath Bhasi appeared before the Excise team investigating the seizure of hybrid ganja from a resort at Omanapuzha in Alappuzha for questioning on Monday (April 28, 2025) morning. Sowmya, a woman model, also appeared for questioning.

Excise sleuths had seized 3 kg of hybrid ganja on April 1. It has so far arrested three persons – Thasleema Sulthana, alias Christina, her husband Sultan Akbar Ali and K. Feroze – in connection with the case.

The investigation team served notices on Mr. Chacko and Mr. Bhasi last week, directing them to appear for questioning after call and message details retrieved from Thasleema’s mobile phone had “established” her links with the film stars. Investigators believe she had previously supplied drugs to the two actors. The woman model reportedly has close ties to Thasleema.

According to the investigators, Sultan had brought the drug, cultivated in Bangkok in Thailand, from Malaysia for distribution in Kerala, especially in the film and tourism sectors with the help of his wife. After bringing it to Tiruchirappalli, the drug was then taken to Ernakulam before being moved to Omanapuzha with the help of Feroze, to be stored at a “safe place” and distributed to clients.

Thasleema, known for her minor roles in films and connections within the Malayalam film industry, has reportedly been involved in drug and sex trafficking, as well as racketeering, for some time – allegedly supplying drugs to “high-end clients”. A few years ago, she was arrested in a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) case registered at a police station in Ernakulam. She also spent a few days in Tihar jail in 2017 in connection with a gold smuggling case.

The probe in the case is being led by Excise Assistant Commissioner S. Ashok Kumar.