No patient, 200kg ganja worth Rs 32L found in speeding ambulance

ALMORA: Police seized 218 kg of ganja with an estimated street value of approximately Rs 32 lakh concealed in 16 bags from an ambulance that was supposed to be transporting a critically ill patient. A probe has been initiated in this case.

The incident took place late on Monday during a routine check at the Bhatraujkhan Mohan Barrier. Police intercepted the ambulance, which attracted attention as its siren was blaring and the driver was attempting to speed past the barriers.

When questioned, the driver told the police that he was carrying a critically ill patient to a hospital in Ramnagar. However, the police decided to search the vehicle and found 16 sacks of ganja in it. While the driver, Roshan Kumar, a resident of Suunsi in Pauri Garhwal district, was taken into custody, his accomplice Dharmendra managed to flee.

The vehicle, which had been utilised for ganja smuggling, was confiscated, Both of them have been booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. The driver told police that the ganja was supplied by an individual in Saraikhet and was to be delivered to Kashipur.

On Tuesday, Bhatraujkhan police station in-charge Madan Mohan Joshi said the driver was employed by an NGO to operate a mobile medical vehicle ambulance and the ambulance was used to transport doctors to rural areas.