Interstate drug cartel's kingpin held

A kingpin of a drug cartel which used to supply drugs in Delhi and adjoining states and who was carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 on his head, has been arrested, police said on Sunday.

Police said the accused, identified as Nazir Hussain of Assam, was arrested from Anand Vihar railway station in east Delhi on Friday evening, on a tip off, as he was coming from Guwahati to Delhi.

"On questioning, Hussain told interrogators that illegal farming of opium is rampant in north-east states like Manipur, Assam and Nagaland and the gang members have become a major source of supply of opium and heroin to Punjab via Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Delhi," said Deputy Commissioner of Police Sanjeev Yadav.

Hussain and his associates used trucks and other heavy vehicles to avoid detection by intelligence agencies. It was also revealed that middlemen were regular customers who used to place orders on phone and pay through banks, he said.

"The police teams earlier in last year 2016 had arrested five drug traffickers and recovered total 69 kg of high grade opium valued several crores in international market from their possession. They disclosed that they were working for Hussain," Yadav added.

--IANS

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