Clandestine ring operated from flat rented for Rs 60k

NEW DELHI: A lavishly furnished flat in upscale DLF Capital Greens in Moti Nagar, attracting a rent of Rs 60,000 per month, was being used to run a clandestine trafficking ring with its clientele in at least three NCR-based universities. The analysis of financial accounts shows transactions worth Rs 1 crore with the students in just three months. Police have written to the Income Tax Department to also initiate a probe, sources have confirmed.

Two of the suspects in the drug trafficking - Lakshya Bhatia and Khalid Zafar, both of whom are in the police net - met and started operating during their stint in an NCR-based university, police said. One of the alleged kingpins, Rudransh Gupta of Greater Kailash, handled the south Delhi and Gurgaon operations.

The other suspects, Nongmaitham Jashobanta and Thiyam Rabikanta, are from Manipur, with the latter engaged in supplying Shillong weed and bringing it to Delhi via train. Jashobanta would travel to Thailand, where weed is legal, and carry it back to Delhi in luggage cavities via flight. An analysis of his travel history shows he visited Thailand around 10 times in the last year and a half.

Jashobanta resided in Moti Nagar area with his wife and was engaged in the illegal same business for the last two years. Back in Imphal in his home state, he had been involved in cultivating Ganja, according to the cops. For Rabikanta, who was pursuing his engineering degree in Manipur, earning easy money was a priority so he came in touch with Jashobanta and decided to work as a carrier for him.

Special commissioner (Crime) Ravindra Yadav said, "Gupta earlier resided in Greater Kailash with his parents. When their business faced losses, they were forced sell their house and to shift base to a rented accommodation in Gurgaon. Gupta is a college dropout and got in contact with Jashobanta on Instagram."

The cops said Gupta would scan social media platforms, pick his targets and then get in touch with them while also supplying to his usual clientele. He had created multiple groups on WhatsApp and Telegram from where he would receive the orders from the students and then send them the drugs via porters or a delivery service.

Crime Branch officers said that when they scanned Jashobanta's financial accounts, they found that in the last three months he had transactions worth a crore of rupees despite not holding a regular job anywhere.

"Details of the accounts of the other accused are awaited, but most payments were made online and the deliverers too were paid in the same manner," said an investigator. "Jashobanta, who played a pivotal role in transporting the cannabis from Thailand, came to Delhi at least twice a month, sometimes alone and at other times accompanied by someone. We are ascertaining the identity of the others involved and more arrests are likely to be made."

Police officers also confirmed that no action had yet been taken against the students who had figured in the list of clients of these drug traffickers. The cops are likely to inform the respective police under whose jurisdiction they fall and organise their counselling in the presence of their parents. De-addiction programmes and other steps are on the cards.

Yadav said, "Our focus is on catching traffickers and cartel members who are supplying these deadly narcotics to the youngsters. The investigation aims to break the supply chain so that the young lives can be saved."