Hyderabad hospital CEO caught with cocaine in bud-shaped packs

HYDERABAD: Cyberabad police have arrested, a 34-year-old physician and CEO of a prominent hospital group in Hyderabad, along with a Mumbai-based courier, for possessing 53 grams of cocaine in Raidurgam on Thursday. The accused were sent to judicial remand on Friday. However, the kingpin of the interstate drug network is absconding.

Acting on specific information, a police team led by Sub-Inspector (SI) B. Sakram laid a trap near Mehfil restaurant in Raidurgam on Thursday evening and caught the doctor red-handed receiving the contraband from Balakrishna Rampyar Ram, a 38-year-old Mumbai-based delivery agent.

The contraband was found wrapped in 57 bud-shaped packs. The doctor told police officials that she stayed in an upscale apartment in Shaikpet and allegedly developed a cocaine addiction while pursuing an MBA in Spain between 2021 and 2022. She had completed her MBBS from a college in Peeramcheruvu in 2014 and an MD in radiation oncology from a Kochi institution in 2017.

The doctor, a divorced mother of two, admitted to continuing her cocaine use after returning to India, initially sourcing it through a local DJ, who was a friend's boyfriend, before establishing contact with one Vansh Thakkar.

Balakrishna, during interrogation, confessed to working as a courier for Thakkar, transporting drugs across states for commission.

"On May 4, the doctor handed over Rs 5 lakh in cash to Balakrishna in Hyderabad on Thakkar's instructions. Balakrishna handed over the cash to Thakkar in Mumbai and, on his instructions, brought a consignment of cocaine to Hyderabad on May 8. When he handed over the contraband to the doctor while sitting in her Mini Cooper on the evening of May 8, after receiving an additional Rs 10,000, we arrested them," a Raidurgam police officer said.

Officers have also seized crucial evidence, including the accused's iPhone containing incriminating WhatsApp conversations about drug deals, and Balakrishna's mobile phone.

"The doctor has been procuring cocaine from Thakkar for about a year. She buys the contraband on a monthly basis. She receives instructions from Thakkar on WhatsApp about the delivery location and time. He had turned on disappearing messages," police said.

A hunt is on for the alleged kingpin, Thakkar.

The accused have been booked under Sections 8(c) and 22(b) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.