Trans-border drugs, arms smuggling racket busted

Amritsar, June 20

The police claimed to have busted a trans-border drugs, arms smuggling and hawala racket with the arrest of eight persons.

Cops seized 4 kg heroin, three pistols, 45 bullets and Rs 2.07 lakh of drug money from their possession.

Those arrested include kingpin Ranjit Singh, alias Kaka, Rajinder Singh, alias Raja, Abhishek, alias Abhi, Vishal, alias Shalu, Lovepreet Singh, alias Kalu, Gurbhej Singh, alias Bheja, Gurjant Singh and Jaspal Singh, all residents of Gharinda.

DGP Gaurav Yadav said the arrests had been made following a 10-day probe. He said cops also impounded seven vehicles of the accused.

He said the investigation was still underway and more accomplices of the accused having cross-border linkages and hawala involvement would be nabbed soon.

The racket was busted following meticulous investigations of backward and forward linkages carried out by the Amritsar Police in connection with the arrest of a local drug peddler Raja. He was nabbed with 500 gm heroin, Rs 40,000 drug money, a car and a pistol. He was also wanted by the Amritsar (Rural) Police in an attempt to murder case.

Amritsar Police Commissioner Ranjit Singh Dhillon said, “Following financial trail and technical investigations, the police teams arrested Kaka and other accused along with further heroin, firearms and cartridges.”

Ranjit, who was in direct contact with Pakistan-based elements, was running a heroin and illegal weapons racket, he added.