Mundra port drug haul: City customs agent questioned

Ludhiana: A day after the Punjab Police and Gujarat’s Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) recovered 75kg heroin from a clothing material container from Mundra port in Gujarat, the Malerkotla police apprehended a Ludhiana-based custom house agent (CHA) and a team from ATS came to Ludhiana to question him. They asked him to appear before at Ahemdabad office of ATS for further questioning.
The CHA clarified to the police that although he had worked for the accused earlier, he had not represented him in the shipment of the particular container from which heroin is recovered. According to the CHA, though he was approached by the accused, identified as Sahil Jain, to get it cleared from the custom, he had refused as not all necessary documents were provided to him.
Before the Malerkotla police detained the CHA, the Ludhiana police officials too had questioned him. According to the Ludhiana police commissioner, the initial questioning indicated that the CHA had no role in the smuggling of drugs in the container. The CHA has been identified as Shatrughan, who works for Amrit Sea Air Expressway, and during the questioning, the police found that Shatrugan was known to the Malerkotla trader Sahil Jain, who was shipping for years.
Commissioner of police Kaustubh Sharma said, “Shatrugan said he knows Sahil for years now. Before the pandemic, Sahil had exported some e-tandoors, folding beds and clay utensils. Shatrugan had helped him to process the shipment of his container. However, they did not work during the Covid- 19 and now again Sahil had approached him for the shipment of a container of clothing material. Shatrugan said as he was not satisfied with the documents he had asked him to wait before the shipment of the container. However, Sahil had hurriedly got the container shipped to Mundra port.”