Ranchi RPF Seizes 16kg Cocaine Worth Rs 8 Lakh at Hatia Station

Ranchi: The Railway Protection Force (RPF) on Friday seized 16 kilograms of cocaine, which was being transported from Sambalpur in Odisha, during a search operation on platform number one at Hatia railway station in Ranchi. The estimated cost of the seized material is around Rs 8 lakh.The RPF informed that the arrested persons included Manoranjan Mallick and a minor, adding that they are natives of Sambalpur and Kandhamal respectively in Odisha. The RPF stated that its flying team and local personnel carried out the search under ‘Operation Narcos’. After the arrival of the Puri-Hatia Express, they saw two persons sitting under suspicious circumstances with bags on their backs, it said. “During questioning, the accused admitted that their bags contained cocaine. Each of them carried eight kilograms of drugs,” it added.After completing the legal formalities, both the accused persons were handed over to the govt rail police, which registered a case under the NDPS Act.An RPF official said, “Both the accused were to hand over the drugs to another carrier at Hatia railway station when we caught them. They were bringing the material from Sambalpur, the area from where large-scale illegal cocaine supply to different parts of the country is taking place. The final destination of the seized material is unknown as the receivers at Hatia station were not caught.”