PATNA: In a breakthrough against drug smuggling, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Patna Office has detained a Nepali citizen who was found in possession of 4 kg of opium.
The arrest is the culmination of long-term observation and intelligence building by the agency, which is working on the national mission to create a drug-free India.
The accused was under surveillance for his reported role in several cases of drug trafficking, official sources said. After receiving some inputs, the NCB dispatched two teams near the Nepal border. The teams tracked the movements of the suspect and apprehended him in the area of Chiraiya Police Station, Motihari. He was found with the stolen goods on a motorcycle, allegedly on his way to give them to a partner in Pipra koth.
In a follow-up operation, conducted quickly, NCB officials also caught the accomplice for whom the opium was being handed over. Both men have been arrested, and a further probe is being carried out.
The Nepali suspect has also been connected in the past to at least two other cases lodged by NCB Patna.