(Image source from: ANI)
On October 25, a drug lab run by jail warden Tihar, a Delhi-based businessman and a Mumbai-based chemist was busted in Greater Noida and 95 kg of drugs were seized in the operation. A special investigation team of NCB and Delhi Police conducted a raid in Greater Noida after receiving information about a secret laboratory involved in manufacturing synthetic drugs for domestic use and export. The raid came after it was discovered that members of Mexico's Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación drug cartel were also involved in drug production. During this operation, approximately 95 kilograms of solid and liquid methamphetamine as well as various chemical precursors and modern production machinery were discovered.
Among those arrested was a Delhi-based businessman who was found at the spot and was earlier arrested by the Department of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) in a drug case. He apparently communicated with the superintendent of Tihar Jail and helped procure chemicals and equipment needed for making medicines. A Mumbai-based chemist was also brought in by the other accused to monitor the manufacturing process and quality checks were carried out by members of the Delhi-based cartel. All four suspects were brought before a judge on October 27 and were held in police custody for three days pending further investigation. In the next operation, this businessman's associates were arrested from Rajouri Garden. Authorities are pursuing funds and assets obtained through this illegal activity. The NCB has highlighted the growing trend of setting up clandestine drug labs in industrial areas to avoid detection by local law enforcement agencies and earlier this year similar labs were dismantled in the state.
In two recent raids within a week in early October, Delhi Police's special investigation busted a major international drug syndicate and seized drugs worth an estimated Rs 7,600 crore. The operation began with a raid in Delhi's Mahipalpur during which authorities seized a record 560 kg of cocaine and 40 kg of marijuana worth around Rs 5.6 billion from Thailand. According to police, the syndicate used road transport from Thailand to smuggle drugs into India via Uttar Pradesh. Earlier, police had recovered 204 kg of high-grade cocaine hidden in snack bags in another raid in West Delhi's Ramesh Nagar area. The value of this cocaine in the international market is 2 billion rupees. According to police, the drugs were part of a larger consignment being prepared for distribution in Mumbai and other states.
The syndicate operated using code words and encrypted communications, connecting with foreign suppliers based in Britain and the Middle East.
