Drug racket: 4 more peddlers arrested

HYDERABAD: Continuing the crackdown on drug peddlers, prohibition and excise department sleuths have arrested four more persons for peddling LSD. Interrogation of the offenders has revealed that a significant number of their buyers are students of international schools and engineering colleges in the city.
Excise sleuths have started sending notices to the managements of these educational institutions asking them to keep a watch on the activities of their pupils.A key suspect in the case, Kiran alias Bob alias Mountain, who appears to be gui ding the arrested accused in procuring drugs by placing orders on the Darknet, is still on the run.
Excise sleuths raided different places in the city on Monday night. Excise sleuths arrested Kundan Singh, 23, a BBA graduate operating a car rental company , Aman Naidu, 25, an engineer working at a gaming company , V Nikhil Shetty, 23, a computer engineer from Bowenpally , and V Ravi Kiran, 34, an engineering graduate operating a yoga studio for possession of drugs.
“We seized about 100 units of LSD from them,“ enforcement director, prohibition and excise, Akun Sabharwal said.
The excise sleuths got information about the four after analysing phone details of the arrested trio -Calvin Mascrenhas, 29, Mohammed Abdul Wahed, 20, and his elder brother Mohammed Abdul Quddus, 29 -two days ago. The officials had seized 700 dots of LSD worth `20 lakh and 35gm of MDMA worth `1.4 lakh from the trio.
When investigators analysed their cell phone data, they discovered that hundreds of school and college students were purchasing drugs from them. “Some of the students are in class 8 and 9,“ an official said. “The students were spending up to `4,000 per week to purchase drugs,“ an investigating official said. Keeping in view the future of the students, TOI is withholding the names of the schools and colleges. In view of the alarming development, the excise sleuths have started writing to the managements of 20 schools and 16 colleges asking them to sensitise teachers and students about the dangers of substance abuse and to watch out for erratic behaviour in students.Excise sleuths have also asked school managements to keep a watch on shops close to the campuses.