Garhwal Post Bureau
Rudrapur, 31 Jan: In a major action against the narcotics trade, the Kumaon Anti-Narcotics Unit of the Special Task Force and local police have arrested a notorious drug smuggler and have recovered heroin with an estimated international market value of around Rs 3.10 crores. The arrest has been claimed as a significant breakthrough, as the STF and police had been tracking the accused for a long time. The motorcycle used in the crime has also been seized, while police teams are engaged in examining the wider network linked to the smuggler.
The joint operation by the STF Kumaon Unit and the local police was carried out in the Kotwali Kichha area, leading to the arrest of Shahnawaz alias Mamu, a resident of Bareilly. During the search, the team recovered a total of 1.033 kilogrammes of heroin from his possession. It has been valued at approximately Rs 3.10 crores. During the interrogation, the accused disclosed that he had procured the consignment from a person identified as Bhaiya, also a resident of Bareilly, and was on his way to deliver the heroin to a person named Harjinder. The Police have stated that Shahnawaz alias Mamu is considered a notorious and a major supplier of heroin in the Kumaon region.
Investigators say that heroin supplied by the accused was in high demand among the local drug peddlers due to its alleged superior purity, which had made him a preferred source for suppliers operating in the region. The STF Anti-Narcotics Unit had been pursuing him for nearly two years. SSP STF Navneet Bhullar shared that Shahnawaz used to regularly purchase heroin from Bhaiya in Bareilly and that, on several occasions, a young man would deliver the drugs to him on Bhaiya’s behalf. Although the accused did not know the delivery agent’s name, he has identified him from photographs available with the STF. Police said efforts are on to trace and arrest Bhaiya and his delivery agent. The arrest of Shahnawaz is being described as a major success under the ‘Drug-Free Uttarakhand’ campaign and is expected to significantly disrupt the supply of heroin in the Kumaon region.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, local police in Doiwala (Dehradun) have arrested liquor smugglers and seized a large consignment of illicit alcohol. Yesterday, acting on information received from an informer during routine checking, the police intercepted a suspicious loader vehicle near the Harrawala outpost. During the search, a substantial quantity of illegal liquor was recovered from the vehicle. The accused failed to produce any valid documents related to the transportation of the liquor, following which all three were arrested on the spot. Police said a total of 143 cases of illicit liquor were seized, including 128 cases of country-made liquor and 15 cases of foreign liquor.
