Drugs meant for Kapurthala jail inmates seized; one arrested

Jalandhar, November 16

A man was arrested with heroin and ice (crystal meth) that was meant to be supplied to convicts lodged in Kapurthala Central Jail. As per the police investigation, men appearing for the hearings at various courts in Jalandhar were supposed to supply these drugs inside the jail.

The revelation has raised alarm and the police said detail checks would be made to ascertain the drug smuggling racket going on inside the jail.

During a patrolling duty near Bidhipur Fatak, a police party came across a man riding a motorbike bearing registration No. PB07-Z-2718. He was going towards Bidhipur from Lidhran. Upon seeing the police at Adda Bidhipur, he tried to escape, but fell while fleeing the spot. Then he took out a polythene bag from his pocket and threw it in the grass. The bag contained 4-gm heroin and 12-gm ice. Upon being apprehended by the police, the man revealed his name as Dilraj Singh, alias Raja, a resident of Chone village in Gurdaspur district.

A case under Sections 21B, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act has been registered against the accused at the Maqsudan police station. The accused on being questioned revealed that Lovepreet Singh, a convict at the Kapurthala Central Jail, had sought the drugs via phone.

As per details revealed by Dilraj Singh the drugs were to be sent to the jail via various accused who would appear in Jalandhar courts for various hearings.

Maqsudan SHO Manjit Singh said, “The accused, Dilraj, was being used as a courier to supply drugs to accused appearing for hearing in Jalandhar courts. Directions were issued for him to appear with drugs at designated places, where men on hearing or those on duty with them, would collect them from him and take them further to the jail. On the basis of Dilraj’s statements, jail inmate Lovepreet Singh has also been nominated in the case. He too, will be brought in for questioning. His records are also being checked. Previously too, drugs have been supplied in this way. Whether any police men are involved in this hasn’t been determined so far. So far no police person’s name has cropped up in the investigation.”

Jalandhar SSP Swarandeep Singh said a detailed investigation was being carried out in the case to ascertain the extent of smuggling of drugs in the jail.

Kartarpur cops nab one with 20-gm heroin

Meanwhile, a man was arrested with 20-gm heroin by the Kartarpur police. Acting on a tip off, a police party was present at a naka at Dayalpur. On seeing the police, a man threw a polythene bag away containing 20-gm heroin. He was identified as Sandeep Singh, alias Sonu, a resident of Sabowal Garh, Jalandhar. The man was arrested and a case under Sections 21B, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act was registered against him at the Kartarpur police station.