Cops dismantle drug cartel; doc, 5 others arrested
New Delhi: The Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) of the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch has dismantled a drug cartel and arrested six individuals including a doctor involved in manufacturing and distributing the psychotropic substance Alprazolam.
The accused were identified as Rajendra Prasad Mishra alias R.P. (48) resident of Sabhapur, Delhi, Ram Ashish Mauriya alias Pappu resident of Brijpuri, Delhi, Anand Kumar alias Sonu resident of Karawal Nagar, Delhi, Deepak Kumar resident of Bhaghpath, Uttar Pradesh, Naveen Aggrawal resident Hisar, Haryana, and Mukesh Kumar residenr of Meerut, UP.
According to the police, the operation, which unfolded on March 23, led to the arrest of six individuals, including doctor Naveen Aggarwal, owner of the manufacturing unit in Hisar, Haryana.
Authorities seized 18 kg of Alprazolam powder valued at around 4.20 crore rupees in the international market alongside unaccounted cash totaling Rs 1,17,60,350 and a scooty used in the crime. The drugs were recovered from Rajender Prasad Mishra, apprehended in the Brijpuri area of Delhi.
The bust followed an intelligence tip-off, which indicated Mishra’s plans to pick up a large consignment near Aggarwal Sweets, Wazirabad Road.
A team led by Inspector Praveen Rathi, under the supervision of ACP Anil Sharma, swiftly moved to intercept Mishra, who was found carrying the drugs concealed in a plastic bag on his scooty.
During interrogation, Mishra revealed that he worked as a carrier for the cartel, procuring Alprazolam from associate Ram Ashish Maurya for delivery to Anand Kumar, another cartel member. Raids at Maurya’s and Kumar’s residences led to the recovery of the cash and the eventual arrests of both men, along with another associate, Deepak Kumar.
Deepak Kumar confessed that the Alprazolam was manufactured at Biocase Foods & Extracts Pvt. Ltd., owned by Dr. Naveen Aggarwal. Subsequent investigations uncovered traces of the drug at the factory, leading to Aggarwal’s arrest. Mukesh Kumar, another accomplice who provided shelter to Deepak, was also detained. A financial investigation is underway, with Rs 1,17,60,350 already frozen under the NDPS Act. Authorities are also in the process of freezing the Hisar factory and properties linked to Anand Kumar, as part of the ongoing probe into the cartel’s operations.
