Assam Police seize drugs valued at Rs 2.2 crore, woman held

Guwahati, April 19 (IANS) Special Task Force (STF) of Assam Police seized drugs valued at Rs 2.2 crore and arrested a woman drug peddler in Guwahati on Saturday, officials said.

An Assam Police spokesman said that the STF personnel, acting on information, arrested a woman identified as Sajida Begum (32) from Sawkuchi, near Guwahati, and 278.28 grams of heroin, worth Rs 2.2 crore.

“Rs 1,49,500 and a mobile phone were also recovered from her possession,” he said.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma appreciated the STF personnel for the recovery of the drugs.

Saturday’s drug seizure in Guwahati occurred within 24 hours after the seizure of drugs worth Rs 71 crore by the STF personnel on April 18. Heroin and highly addictive methamphetamine tablets, valued at Rs 71 crore, were seized during two separate operations at the Amingaon area in Assam's Kamrup district on Friday.

An official said that two drivers of two vehicles in which the drugs were transported were also arrested in this connection.

He said that during the search operation, the STF personnel recovered 2,70,000 Yaba tablets valued at Rs 67 crore from a truck, while 520 grams of heroin valued at Rs 4 crore, contained in 40 soap boxes recovered from a Hyundai car.

He said that both the methamphetamine tablets, also known as Yaba or party tablets and the heroin were smuggled from Myanmar.

“Drivers of both the vehicles, identified as Nur Islam (34) and Nazrul Hussain alias Ali Hussain (22) were arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act 1985,” he said.

The official said that the April 18 operation was led by STF chief Parthasarathi Mahanta, who was assisted by Additional Superintendent of Police, STF, Kalyan Pathak.

Officials suspect that the highly addictive methamphetamine tablets were smuggled from Myanmar and brought to Assam via the neighbouring state, and were intended to be illegally traded to neighbouring Bangladesh or other parts of the country.

--IANS

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