Chandigarh, Nov 27 (IANS) In a breakthrough, Punjab Police’s Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) has busted a drug trafficking module with the arrest of a drug smuggler and recovered 5.084 kg heroin, 1.681 kg ICE (methamphetamine) and Rs 6.50 lakh drug money from his possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav here on Thursday.
The operation was conducted by the ANTF Ropar Range. The arrested accused has been identified as Akashdeep Singh, a resident of Goindwal Sahib in Tarn Taran.
Apart from recovering contraband and drug money, police teams have also recovered one leather bag and two electronic weighing machines, and impounded his white Chevrolet Cruze car (DL 82 AP 9522), which he was using to deliver the drug consignments.
DGP Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed links of the arrested accused with the key handler, who coordinates the delivery and distribution of drug consignments.
The DGP said that further investigation is underway to trace backward and forward linkages in this case to dismantle the entire network.
Sharing operational details, AIG (ANTF – Ropar Range) A.S. Aulakh said that acting on specific intelligence about the accused and his associates had retrieved a large consignment of contraband and were hiding in a flat at Nature Hut 3 in Kharar, an ANTF team led by DSP Yogesh Kumar conducted a raid at the flat.
“During the raid, police teams have managed to arrest suspect Akashdeep, while two of his associates managed to flee by jumping from the balcony of the flat into an adjacent empty plot, ” he said.
The AIG said that further investigation is ongoing, and raids are being conducted to nab the two absconding accused people.
More recoveries are likely in the coming days, he added. In this regard, a case dated November 24 has been registered under Sections 21-C and 29 of the NDPS Act at the Police Station in Mohali.