Hyderabad: Nine individuals were arrested in a massive crackdown by the Hyderabad Narcotics Enforcement Wing (HNEW), in coordination with local police, arresting nine drug peddlers in independent raids throughout Begum Bazaar, Golconda and Bolarum on Wednesday, July 23. Rs 82.1 lakh value of property and contraband were recovered from their possession.
Two interstate drug peddlers and one local contact were nabbed by HNEW in coordination with Begum Bazaar police. The team recovered 100 grams of Meow Meow, a synthetic drug, one country-made pistol, six live bullets, one empty shell, and three mobile phones, with the cumulative seized property worth Rs 10 lakh.
The accused persons are Pawan Bhati, 24, and Hemsingh Kachhawa, 26, natives of Rajasthan, and Jeetendara Panwar alias Jithu, 38, native of Rajasthan but resident in Kattedan, Hyderabad.
Police said Jithu, who owns a local sweets shop, retailed drugs provided by the other two accused for good profits. Pawan, who had earlier opened two shops in Hyderabad, came back to the city in May after suffering losses in business and started supplying drugs. Hemsingh, who was earlier arrested in a POCSO case in Rajasthan, was a courier, providing drugs to Jithu for commission.
All three have been arrested under the NDPS Act and the Arms Act.
During another operation, HNEW and Golconda police apprehended four interstate peddlers, one local peddler, and two consumers, seizing 276 grams of cocaine worth Rs 69 lakh.
Interstate accused are Mujaffar Wahid Shaikh, 30, Vinod Kishanlal Shrivastava, 53, Chaitanya Vinayak Wagh, 29, and Mustak Khan alias Imran, 31, all belonging to Mumbai. The local peddler, Prem, 29, is an employee of a software company from Hyderabad with prior cases of NDPS and Prohibition and Excise.
The two consumers, Ravi Kumar Varma, 39, and Sachin, 39, are from Hyderabad.
Police disclosed that the accused imported cocaine from abroad and shipped it from Mumbai to Hyderabad. Chaitanya, an aspiring entrepreneur, became a consumer-turned-peddler, while Imran and Vinod were major suppliers. Prem, who got hooked during a trip to Goa, joined the trafficking chain later.
All seven have been booked under the NDPS Act.
In another raid, Bolarum and HNEW police arrested a software employee, Harshavardhan alias Harsha, 28, and recovered 10 grams of cocaine, 11 ecstasy pills weighing 6 grams, and a mobile phone, all worth Rs 3.1 lakh.
Harsha of Gajularamaram started using drugs after a personal failure and soon started sourcing drugs from Goa and Bangalore for sale in Hyderabad. He has been booked under the NDPS Act.
The Hyderabad Narcotics Enforcement Wing appealed to citizens not to use drugs and appealed to parents to keep an eye on the behaviour of their wards.
Members of the public with information about drug abuse are encouraged to contact HNEW on 8712661601.
