ITANAGAR, 1 Apr: In a joint operation conducted over the past two weeks in the Itanagar Capital Region (ICR), the capital police arrested 21 drug peddlers, including a Dimapur (Nagaland)-based drug supplier, and seized 765.85 gms of suspected heroin, worth around Rs 90 lakhs, from their possession.
The supplier from Dimapur was caught with 311 gms of suspected heroin.
“This is the highest seizure of drugs in a single case by the capital police,” the police said in a release.
A team from the Naharlagun police station, led by Inspector Minli Geyi, started the operation on 22 March with the arrest of a peddler named Jumba Loya, of Dokum Colony, Naharlagun, with 18.37 gms of suspected heroin. A case [u/s 21 (a)/27/27(A)/29 NDPS Act] was registered at the police station in this regard.
“The police team then worked out the details of suppliers of Jumba Loya, and they were identified as one Sonu, based in Banderdewa, and Sanjay, based out of Gumto.
“Both Sonu @ Moniram Das and his accomplices, Rohit and Kunal, from Banderdewa, were arrested by the team and 56.85 gms of suspected heroin were seized from them,” the police said.
“The team then arrested Sanjay and recovered 50.06 gms of suspected heroin from his possession. A total of 125.28 gms of suspected heroin has been seized in this case, and five arrested,” the police said.
The arrestees have been identified as Jumba Loya (24), Moniram Das, Sonu Das (24), Rohit Borah (20), Kunal Chetry (26), and Vikash Doley @ Sanjay Doley (29).
In a separate case, the police on 28 March arrested one Amir Ali, an Assam-based drug supplier who had come to Sood village to hand over drugs, and seized 114.80 gms of suspected heroin from his possession.
“His accomplices, Debojit Mili and Habijul Islam, were also arrested, and a case [u/s 279/336/337/427/353 IPC r/w 21 (b), 27/29 NDPS Act] has been registered at the Papu Hill police station,” the police said.
“The same police team trapped Amir Ali’s supplier and one of the biggest suppliers of narcotics in the ICR – Dimapur-based Jabir Hussain (28), and his accomplice Reena Biswas (29), from Chimpu area on 30 March,” the police said, adding that 311 gms of suspected heroin were seized from their possession.
The police said that “investigation into the finances and contacts of Jabir Hussain has revealed names of many of his associates who procured drugs from him and then sold them to youngsters in the ICR.
“We believe that the arrest of Jabir Hussain will comprehensively hamper drug trade in the ICR as he is one the biggest suppliers of drugs in our state, and till now, as per our estimates, he has sold drugs worth more than Rs 3 crore in the ICR,” the police said.
Other police stations in the ICR have also made several drug-related arrests.
On 31 March, an Itanagar police team, led by Inspector Khiksi Yangfo, arrested four habitual drug peddlers in the ICR – Dora Tanu, of Riambang village in Kra-Daadi district, Rajan Brahma, of Kokrajhar district in Assam, Raj Subba, of Bihumari village in Assam, and Racho Ticho, of Hapoli, Lower Subansiri district.
A case [u/s 21 (b), 27/27 (A)/29 NDPS Act] has been registered in this regard.
Earlier, the Banderdewa police team arrested one Binbi Ligo, of Liromoba in West Siang district, and seized 29.1 gms of suspected heroin from his possession.
On 24 March, the Chimpu police arrested a peddler identified as Jakla Boro @ Tekla, of Bihu Boro village in Assam, and seized 26.93 gms of suspected heroin from him.
On 31 March, the Nirjuli police registered a case [u/s 21 (A)/27 NDPS Act] and arrested two drug peddlers – John Tawe, of Seijosa in Pakke-Kessang district, and Dependra Singh Shekawat, of A Sector, Naharlagun – and seized 18.9 grams of suspected heroin from their possession.
“After concerted effort last year, in 2023 the capital police have continued their war on drugs and registered a total of 8 cases, arrested 21 and seized 894.131 gms of suspected heroin,” the police said.
