For this family, drug smuggling a way of life

Neeraj bagga

Amritsar, February 12

Family culture and close affiliation with smugglers led the 17-year old, held with 15 kg heroin and Rs 8.4 lakh cash on Thursday, to the world of crime.

His father, uncle and grandfather are already undergoing sentences for heroin smuggling. Though his family has been staying in an area situated on the city outskirts, they originally hail from Kakkar village, which is located next to the International Border. In the police records, a large number of people hailing from the village are involved in smuggling. So the immediate environment acted as a catalyst for the teenager, too, who could not resist the moves. Resham Singh, whom Counter Intelligence (CI) considers a prima-facie mastermind of the trans-border racket, was a person from this immediate environment who found in him a convenient and unsusceptible courier.

According to sources in the CI, which cracked this case, this consignment too is believed to have been picked up by the juvenile from the same village and was to be delivered on the city outskirts.

An average student, he is studying in Class X from open school. Sources in the CI said investigation revealed that it was his third consignment and he had earned Rs 40,000 and Rs 50,000 in previous two consignments.

Other members in his family are his mother, who earns by stitching clothes, and a 10-year old brother.

Fond of pigeon flying, he used to give some money to his mother citing that he won the amount as prize money in pigeon flying competition. While he splurged the remaining money on buying branded clothes. His neighbours stated that the juvenile avoided mixing up with even youngsters from the neighbourhood.