PUNJAB POLICE BUST DRUG SMUGGLING RACKET BEING OPERATED BY USA-BASED SARWAN SINGH; ONE HELD WITH 12-KG HEROIN

— PUNJAB POLICE COMMITTED TO MAKING PUNJAB A DRUG-FREE STATE AS PER DIRECTIONS OF CM BHAGWANT SINGH MANN

— PROBE ON TO UNEARTH WHOLE NETWORK OF DRUG SUPPLIERS, DEALERS AND THEIR BUYERS: AIG SSOC SUKHMINDER MANN

CHANDIGARH/AMRITSAR, October 23:

          In a big blow to trans-border narcotic network amidst the ongoing war against drugs waged on the directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Punjab Police have busted a cross-border drug smuggling racket being operated by USA-based smuggler Sarwan Singh with the arrest of one person after recovering 12Kg heroin from his possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav here on Monday.

          Notably, Sarwan Singh, who is carrying Rs 2 lakh reward on his arrest, is a brother of infamous drug smuggler Ranjeet alias Cheeta and is wanted in a 532-kg Heroin haul case, in which the latter was arrested in May 2020. Ranjit Cheeta was the mastermind behind the smuggling of 532 packets of heroin which were seized by Customs department at ICP Attari in July 2019 and is being investigated by the NIA.

          The arrested drug smuggler has been identified as Rahul of Naraingarh in Amritsar. Apart from seizing heroin, Police teams have also impounded his Honda Amaze car, in which he was travelling.

          DGP Gaurav Yadav said that following intel inputs that associates of Sarwan Singh have retrieved the heroin consignment dropped via drone and they are going to deliver it to someone, State Special Operation Cell (SSOC) Amritsar conducted a special police checking in the city area of Amritsar, and arrested the accused Rahul after recovering 12 packets of heroin, weighing 1kg each, from his Honda Amaze car.

          The DGP said that as per preliminary investigations, the accused person was directly in touch with USA-based smuggler Sarwan Singh and was supplying heroin across the state after importing it from Pakistan.

          Sharing more details, AIG SSOC Amritsar Sukhminder Singh Mann said that further investigations are being conducted to probe the backward and forward linkages and unearth the whole network of drug suppliers, dealers and their buyers. Efforts are being made to ascertain the total amount of narcotics procured by the arrested accused till date, he added.

          A case FIR no. 44 dated 22.10.2023 has been registered under sections 21, 25 and 29 of the NDPS Act at Police State Special Operation Cell Amritsar.