CHANDIGARH, June 5: The Amritsar commissionerate has apprehended six persons including an Afghan national and two juveniles over suspected links with a cross-border arms and drug trafficking network, and illicit hawala transfers, a top Punjab Police official said on Friday.
Over 1 kg of heroin, five sophisticated pistols and Rs 5 lakh in suspected drug money was recovered from their possession, Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Gaurav Yadav said.
Among the arrestees is Baz Mohammad (62), an Afghan national residing in Haryana’s Sonipat, who recently shifted to Lajpat Nagar in Delhi.
The other accused were identified as Ankush Barthwal (33), a resident of Nawanshahr; Des Raj alias Vicky (32), a resident of in Jalandhar; Rajandeep Singh alias Raja (26), residing in Amritsar; and two juveniles, the DGP said.
All four arrestees are habitual offenders with previous criminal involvement, Punjab Police said in a statement.
The recovered firearms and ammunition include three 9 mm Glock pistols (made in Austria), one .30 bore Zigana and one .30 bore pistol, and two live cartridges.
DGP Yadav said preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused, in connivance with foreign-based associates, were allegedly procuring consignments of arms and narcotics through contacts established via various social media platforms, and distributing them on directions of handlers based abroad.
Follow the Daily Excelsior channel on WhatsApp
The network was actively operating in the Majha and Doaba regions of Punjab, he said, adding that further investigation is underway to establish backward and forward linkages to identify other associates involved in the network.
Sharing operational details, Amritsar Police Commissioner Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said initially, police teams apprehended two juveniles and recovered one Glock pistol along with two live cartridges from their possession, while one more pistol along with 500 grams of heroin was recovered later based on their disclosures.
Further investigation led to the arrest of Baz Mohammad, Ankush Barthwal and Des Raj, and three pistols, 535 grams of heroin and Rs 5 lakhs in suspected drug money was recovered from their possession, he said
Interrogation of the arrestees led to the arrest of their associate Rajandeep Singh alias Raja.
Bhullar said the probe has further revealed that Ankush Barthwal had recently returned to India from Uganda, where he was employed.
During his stay abroad, a co-worker introduced him to Baz Mohammad, and after returning to India, Ankush allegedly joined hands with him and got involved in the illegal supply of narcotics and firearms, he said.
An FIR under relevant provisions has been registered at Cantonment police station in Amritsar, he added. (PTI)
Follow our WhatsApp channel
