Delhi Police made a fifth arrest Thursday following the seizure of over 500kg of cocaine this week – the largest ever recorded in the national capital and one valued at around Rs 5,000 crore.
Special Cell cops arrested Jitendra Pal Singh, also known as Jassi, from the airport in Punjab's Amritsar as he was trying to flee to the United Kingdom, indicating a link between organised crime in that country and a pan-India network smuggling illegal drugs into this country.
The cops were alerted to Singh's attempted escape – he has been living in the UK for the past 17 years as a 'permanent resident' – as they had issued a LOC, or look out circular, against him.
Singh, 40, is an Indian citizen who had flown in from London to supervise the cartel's operations in India. He was trying to return to the UK after cops seized the drugs and arrested four people.
The authorities believe this particular drug syndicate – which operates out of Delhi and Mumbai in India – also has links to Dubai. The name of an Indian citizen – Virendra Basoya, who now lives in the West Asian country – has been flagged during Delhi Police's interrogation of suspects.
The Dubai Link
Basoya – who cops believe could be one of the masterminds, if not the kingpin, behind this drug smuggling network – was arrested in an earlier unrelated case, but secured bail.
Last year police from Maharashtra's Pune raided locations in Delhi and seized drugs worth Rs 3,000 crore, including 'meow meow', the street name for the synthetic stimulant mephedrone.
Virendra Basoya, believed to be the head of an international, Dubai-based drug ring (File).
The raid came a day after Basoya married his son to the daughter of an ex-MLA from Uttar Pradesh's Noida; the wedding took place at a luxurious farmhouse near Delhi's airport. Alerted to the cops' action he fled to Dubai after the ceremony and now heads an international cartel.
READ | In Biggest Delhi Drug Bust, Cocaine Worth Thousands Of Crore Seized
Tushar Goyal – the other main accused in this case – and Basoya are understood to be old friends; in fact, cops believe it was Basoya who brought Goyal into the fold and offered him Rs 3 crore per delivery of each of 100 consignments. And it was Basoya who sent Singh to India.
According to the police, on arrival in the national capital Singh checked into a hotel in the Panchsheel area and met Goyal, after which drove to Ghaziabad in UP to collect the drugs.
Delhi Police have also identified a Mumbai supplier who was to add to this consignment.
Dawood Ibrahim Link?
And the cops are also checking for links between Basoya and 'D-Company', the Mumbai crime syndicate controlled by mob boss and terrorist Dawood Ibrahim, who is among India's 'most wanted'.
Delhi Police War On Drugs
Wednesday's drug bust follows the arrest of two Afghan nationals Sunday from the city's Tilak Nagar. Around 400 grams of heroin and 160 grams of cocaine were recovered from them.
And, on the same day, 1.6 kg of cocaine, valued in excess of Rs 25 crore, was seized at the Delhi airport from a passenger arriving from the Federal Republic of Liberia. He has been arrested.
READ | Cameroon Man Hides Rs 11 Crore Cocaine In Stomach, Arrested In Delhi
In June the cops arrested a 70-year-old Cameroon national for smuggling cocaine worth Rs 11 crore; the drugs were recovered from within his body, officials said. He has also been arrested.
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