17.5 kg heroin seized in 2 border districts

The Border Security Force (BSF) seized 13 kg heroin in the border belt of Tarn Taran district on Thursday, while the Amritsar city police seized 4.5 kg contraband with the arrest of three persons, including a jail warder.

Following inputs by the BSF intelligence wing about the presence of narcotics, the BSF troops searched the suspected area. Around 12.40 pm, the troops found six plastic bottles filled with suspected heroin (gross weight 13.160 kg). This drug was found in a field near Kalash village in Tarn Taran district. No arrest has been made in this connection so far.

Meanwhile, the Amritsar city police busted another cross-border smuggling racket with the arrest of three persons. They seized 4.5 kg contraband and Rs 4.32 lakh drug money from their possession.

Those arrested were identified as Akashdeep Singh, alias Akash, his brother Satwinderpal Singh, aka Satti, both residents of Guru Hargobindpura in Chheharta area, besides jail warder Gurmej Singh of Kot Sadar Khan in Moga. Gurmej Singh, posted at the Amritsar Central Jail, allegedly used to sneak in and supply dope to prisoners.

Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said during the preliminary probe, it was found that Akashdeep and Satinderpal had close links with Pakistan-based drug peddlers. They were using drones to push in drugs from across the border. He said the duo used to supply heroin to Gurmej Singh to supply it to those involved in drug peddling and lodged inside the high security jail complex.

An FIR has been registered under the NDPS Act and the investigations are on to establish backward and forward linkages.

“The CIA staff received reliable inputs that two brothers had received a consignment of narcotics dropped using drone from across the border and had concealed that at their residence in Guru Hargobindpura, Chheharta,” Bhullar said. Police teams swung into action and arrested the drug smugglers from a house near Dera Radha Soami, Guru Hargobindpura, Chheharta, Amritsar. Later, Gurmej was also nabbed from Fatehpur. “Gurmej acted as a mediator for drug smugglers lodged in the jail,” Bhullar said.