Ahead of NYE, drug spurt...packed in soap, lentil & fish boxes

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru

Ahead of Christmas and New Year celebrations, now just days away, a foreign national was arrested for allegedly running a drug racket with 12 kg of banned MDMA crystals worth an estimated Rs 24 crore seized from her possession, police said on Tuesday. This is the largest drug seizure by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) unit of Bengaluru Police in the state so far, they claimed. The arrest was made based on specific information about the woman suspect, who resides in TC Palya area in KR Puram police station limits, police said.

Based on the information, on December 13, the CCB team raided the place and arrested the foreign national who was involved in selling the prohibited drug, they added. "The Narcotics Control Wing of CCB has successfully cracked an MDMA Crystal drug network. It is an international network. They have recovered 12 kg of pure white and yellow MDMA. The total value is approximately Rs 24 crore. This is one of the biggest recoveries in Bengaluru and Karnataka," said B Dayananda, Bengaluru Police Commissioner. The Narcotics Control Wing received information that a foreign woman residing in TC Palya, under the jurisdiction of KR Puram Police Station, had set up a shop catering to the needs of African nationals by selling food and grocery items, he said.

"Alongside this, she was selling illegal drugs. After the CCB Narcotics team arrested her, they interrogated her, got the details, and seized 12 kgs of drugs. We are searching for the supplier,'' he added. According to him, during the investigation, it was found that they brought the banned drugs from Mumbai in soap packets, dry fish boxes, and so on.

They used to supply this to software engineers, foreigners, and others at higher prices. In total, 12 kg of MDMA crystals, mobile phones and 70 Airtel SIM cards have been seized. A Mumbai-based woman was supplying the drugs to the arrested foreign national. The female accused, who was buying drugs from Mumbai at low prices, used to smuggle drugs in packets of lentils and soap to avoid suspicion. "She has confessed that she was involved in making illegal money by selling drugs at higher prices.

The suspect came to Bengaluru on a business visa five years ago, and now the visa has also expired. Further investigation is underway to identify the Mumbai woman, find out why they had 70 SIM cards, and determine where they were getting the drugs from," he added. A case under NDPS Act and Foreigners Act has been registered and further investigation is underway to nab the other foreign national involved in the racket.