PUNE: The officials of the Narcotics Cell, Customs, Pune for the first time busted an online narcotic drugs racket and arrested a doctor and an engineering student on April 3.
The officials had intercepted a car in the parking lot of a mall on the Ahmednagar Road after receiving reliable information regarding the online procurement and trafficking of psychotropic drugs.
“On the basis of information received regarding the online procurement and trafficking of psychotropic drugs in large quantity, the officers of Narcotics Cell, Customs, Pune kept strict surveillance on the mall located on the Pune-Ahmednagar Road on April 3 and intercepted a car bearing registration no. MH-14-EP-4249,” informed a Customs official.
“Personal search of two occupants and the aforesaid car resulted in the recovery of a crystal-like white powder purported to be Mephedrone (MD); pink coloured triangular ecstasy pills (MDMA); and a large number of stamp like articles, laced with LSD. All psychotropic substances, approximately valued at Rs 8 lakh in the Indian illicit market, were seized. Two persons, a doctor and an engineering student of a reputed college from Pune have been apprehended,” said Suhail A Kazi, Joint Commissioner, Customs, in a statement.
“Both accused in their statement have accepted willful and conscious possession and admitted that they had purchased these drugs for sale from an online portal and the payment was made through digital payment. Their modus operandi of advertising the drugs, procuring it through the Internet and dispatching it through a courier service is under investigation,” read the statement further.
Both the accused persons have been arrested and are presently remanded to Customs’ custody till April 8, by NDPS court Pune. This is the first case of its kind wherein the racket of online purchase and sale of narcotics drugs has been busted by the Customs Department in Pune. A detailed investigation of the suppliers and their customers, to whom the drugs have been supplied in the city and the trail of digital transaction/payment is in progress.