In the biggest-ever drug recovery by the Delhi police, 354 kg of heroin worth ₹2,500 crore has been seized and four persons, including an Afghanistan national, have been arrested.
Special Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Neeraj Thakur said the accused have been identified as Hazrat Ali, a resident of Afghanistan; Rizwan Ahmed, resident of Delhi; and Gurjot Singh and Gurdeep Singh, both residents of Jalandhar, Punjab.
Extensive network
The police said the racket extended across several States as well as Afghanistan and Europe. Around 100 kg of chemicals used for preparing the contraband has also been seized.
Police said information was recently received about Rizwan’s whereabouts and he was arrested from Ghitorni on July 5. He had been on his way to deliver 1 kg of heroin. He is allegedly involved in supplying drugs in Delhi, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana.
During interrogation, Rizwan allegedly told the police that he works for Isha Khan, who recently left India and is now based in Afghanistan.
Rizwan allegedly told investigators he was asked by Isha to meet Gurpreet and Gurjot, who were operating a drug racket from Faridabad. Acting on the information, the two were arrested from a housing society in Faridabad.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah said a huge recovery of heroin was made from the duo. Around 166 kg of heroin was recovered from a car, another 115 kg from a different vehicle, and another 70 kg was found in a secret cavity in a bed at their accommodation. During interrogation, the accused allegedly told the police they operate on the directions of Navpreet Singh, who is based in Portugal.
Gurpreet had allegedly met Navpreet in Kapurthala jail when they were both in judicial custody in cases registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
On Rizwan’s instance, Hazrat Ali was arrested from Gurugram and 2 kg of heroin along with chemicals used to prepare the contraband was recovered.
Talking about the modus operandi, Mr. Kushwah said the opium is grown in Afghanistan and then packaged and transported to Chabahar port in Iran.
The consignment is then shipped to JNPT Jawahar Lal Nehru Post Trust Mumbai. Thereafter, the contraband is separated from legitimate exports and sent to makeshift factories in Madhya Pradesh for further extraction and processing. Locals, with the help of Afghan experts, process the heroin using chemicals. The heroin is then delivered across the country.
Further investigation is under way, said the police.
