Attari border drug haul case: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Saturday mentioned {that a} key absconding accused has been arrested in reference to the Attari border heroin seizure case involving the smuggling of over 102 kgs of narcotics from Afghanistan by way of the India-Pak border in April 2022.
Amritpal Singh, a resident of Tarn Taran district in Punjab, was taken into custody by the NIA on Friday. He is the third particular person to be arrested within the case, the NIA mentioned in an announcement.
The investigations have revealed that Singh was the handler of money and launderer of drug proceeds by way of banking and hawala channels.
What is the case?
The case pertains to the restoration and seizure of a complete of 102.784 kgs of heroin, valued at approx. Rs. 700 crores. The seizures have been made in two installments, on twenty fourth and twenty sixth April 2022, by the Indian Customs when the medication arrived within the nation from Afghanistan by way of ICP Attari, Amritsar. The medication had been hid in a consignment of Licorice roots (Mulethi).
Amritpal Singh detained while trying to flee to Dubai
Singh was detained by immigration officers on December 12, 2023, while trying to flee to Dubai from the Amritsar International Airport. The immigration officers detained him on the premise of the orders handed by the competent authority on December 7, 2023, in view of the Look Out Circular (LOC) issued in opposition to by him by the NIA.
His function within the conspiracy relating to the worldwide drug nexus got here to gentle following the examination of associates of the assorted individuals accused within the case, and likewise from a number of incriminating transactions achieved by Amritpal Singh within the financial institution accounts of the opposite accused.
NIA investigations have revealed Singh to have been concerned within the bigger conspiracy hatched by a world drug cartel. As a part of the drug community, he was the conduit for the circulation of drug cash to numerous distributors in India in addition to the principle accused settled overseas. He used his journey company and cash switch enterprise to switch the proceeds of medication, as per the investigations.
NIA conducts searches at Amrtpal Singh’s premises
Based on the disclosures of the associates of the accused, the NIA had, on October 22, 2023, carried out searches at Singh’s residential and official premises, main to the restoration of money amounting to Rs 1,34,12,000, as proceeds of narcotics. “It was found that Singh had, at the behest of Dubai-based absconding accused Shahid Ahmed alias Qazi Abdul Wadood, transferred huge amounts generated as proceeds of drugs into his (Shahid’s) bank accounts and also to the latter’s India-based associate Razi Haider Zaidi and some others,” it mentioned.
On November 8, 2023, a day after the Competent Authority issued the freeze order, the NIA froze Amritpal’s seized money quantity as ‘illegally acquired property’ underneath Section 68F(1) of the NDPS Act, 1985.
The NIA took over the case on the instructions of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), and its investigation has to date proven that the drug consignment in query was despatched to India by Afghanistan-based co-accused Nazir Ahmed Qani, a resident of Mazar-e-Sharif, on the instructions of Shahid Ahmed. The similar was supposed to be delivered to the accused Razi Haider Zaidi in India, for distribution in numerous elements of the nation for financial positive aspects.
NIA had, on December 16, 2022, filed a chargesheet in opposition to 4 accused, Shahid Ahmed alias Qazi Abdul Wadood, Nazir Ahmed Qani, Razi Haider Zaidi and Vipin Mittal, within the case. While Mittal and Zaidi, each residents of Delhi, have been arrested in August 2022, Shahid and Nazir, who’re primarily based out of India, have been declared absconding within the case.
