‘Pak is the villain in heroin smuggling’
AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) which seized a 5kg consignment of heroin from Salaya in Devbhoomi Dwarka on Sunday suspects a larger conspiracy involving the Pakistani terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed. The ATS says that the Pakistan-based terror outfit has a substantial role in pushing drugs into India as part of the narco-terror plan to raise funds for attacks in India.
“Opium is grown in Afghanistan. From there, it is taken to Bahawalpur in Pakistan where it is processed into heroin and later smuggled into India and the European Union,” an ATS official said. “Bahawalpur is Jaish’s headquarters. Hence, we suspect the narco-terror angle in the smuggling of drugs into India.”
The official said there is evidence to show a link between the seizure and a case in which the Australian navy had intercepted a dhow carrying a huge stock of heroin in 2014. “The dhow was loaded with heroin in Pakistan,” the official said.
Senior ATS sources said they have also determined that the seized consignment was part of 100kg cache which was smuggled into India by sea about four months ago and then routed to Punjab by trucks from North Gujarat.
“We have also learnt that another consignment of 200kg, with five packets of 40kg each, was smuggled into India six months ago,” the official said. “Both the consignments are believed to have been sold. We are looking for a man who is believed to be the link between the receivers of heroin in India and Jaish handlers in Pakistan.”
The Gujarat ATS on Sunday night had arrested two persons. The first, Abdul Aziz Bhagad of Salaya, owns a dhow-manufacturing unit. The second, Arif Sumra, is transporter in Mandvi, Kutch.
ATS sleuths had seized 5kg heroin from Bhagad. During his interrogation, it came to light that Sumra was responsible for receiving the drugs and transporting them to North Gujarat.
Drugs stolen by courier
Drug lords operating on the Pakistani side of the Iran-Pakistan border don’t use dhows with flags of Oman, Syria, or Somalia because international marine security agencies monitor them. “They use dhows bearing Indian markings,” an ATS official said. “For Rs 50 lakh, about 150 nautical miles from the Gujarat coast, Bhagad loaded about 105kg heroin from a trawler that had came from Pakistan. Bhagad stole five packets of 1kg each and delivered only 100 packets to Sumra’s fishing trawler.”
Action against police inspector
Senior ATS sources said that over the past six months or so heroin was being smuggled from Salaya to different parts of Gujarat and across the country. “We have asked the police inspector of the special operations group to show us how many drug-related cases has he initiated over the past few months and why smuggling on such a large scale could not be averted,” a Gujarat Police official said.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/pak-is-the-villain-in-heroin-smuggling/articleshow/65393243.cms
“Opium is grown in Afghanistan. From there, it is taken to Bahawalpur in Pakistan where it is processed into heroin and later smuggled into India and the European Union,” an ATS official said. “Bahawalpur is Jaish’s headquarters. Hence, we suspect the narco-terror angle in the smuggling of drugs into India.”
The official said there is evidence to show a link between the seizure and a case in which the Australian navy had intercepted a dhow carrying a huge stock of heroin in 2014. “The dhow was loaded with heroin in Pakistan,” the official said.
Senior ATS sources said they have also determined that the seized consignment was part of 100kg cache which was smuggled into India by sea about four months ago and then routed to Punjab by trucks from North Gujarat.
“We have also learnt that another consignment of 200kg, with five packets of 40kg each, was smuggled into India six months ago,” the official said. “Both the consignments are believed to have been sold. We are looking for a man who is believed to be the link between the receivers of heroin in India and Jaish handlers in Pakistan.”
The Gujarat ATS on Sunday night had arrested two persons. The first, Abdul Aziz Bhagad of Salaya, owns a dhow-manufacturing unit. The second, Arif Sumra, is transporter in Mandvi, Kutch.
ATS sleuths had seized 5kg heroin from Bhagad. During his interrogation, it came to light that Sumra was responsible for receiving the drugs and transporting them to North Gujarat.
Drugs stolen by courier
Drug lords operating on the Pakistani side of the Iran-Pakistan border don’t use dhows with flags of Oman, Syria, or Somalia because international marine security agencies monitor them. “They use dhows bearing Indian markings,” an ATS official said. “For Rs 50 lakh, about 150 nautical miles from the Gujarat coast, Bhagad loaded about 105kg heroin from a trawler that had came from Pakistan. Bhagad stole five packets of 1kg each and delivered only 100 packets to Sumra’s fishing trawler.”
Action against police inspector
Senior ATS sources said that over the past six months or so heroin was being smuggled from Salaya to different parts of Gujarat and across the country. “We have asked the police inspector of the special operations group to show us how many drug-related cases has he initiated over the past few months and why smuggling on such a large scale could not be averted,” a Gujarat Police official said.
Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/pak-is-the-villain-in-heroin-smuggling/articleshow/65393243.cms
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