The Hindu : New Delhi News : Police hunting for clients of drug supplier

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Jul 14, 2006

New Delhi

New Delhi

Police hunting for clients of drug supplier

Devesh K. Pandey

Heroin smuggling on the rise along India-Pakistan border

NEW DELHI: Gurnam Singh, an alleged drug supplier arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi police earlier this month with 37 kg of heroin, used to supply the stuff in bulk mainly to two men of African origin operating from the Capital, say the police.

According to the police, Gurnam Singh, who had been living in neighbouring Faridabad under the pseudonym Kuldeep Singh since March 2005, disclosed during his interrogation that all his consignments were meant to be smuggled out to European and African countries. He used to get fine-quality heroin of Afghani origin from the Indo-Pakistan border along Punjab through his men and then transport it to his Faridabad hideout.

While Gurnam allegedly supplied heroin mostly to people of African origin, his main clients in Delhi were David and Nashley, who are suspected to be Nigerians. David operated from Vikaspuri, while Nashley had set up base at Uttam Nagar in West Delhi. They are suspected to have gone underground after Gurnam's arrest. A hunt has been launched for them.

Gurnam purportedly revealed that the drug peddling business across the Indo-Pakistan border runs entirely on "good faith". The parties involved are interested only in getting the consignments and the cash on time.

Fake identities

Interestingly, most drug peddlers on both sides operate under fake names and no one knows the real identity of the other.

In Gurnam's case, drug peddlers from Pakistan, including his direct contact named Saleem, knew him by the name "Bau". He allegedly told his interrogators that he used to buy heroin at the rate of Rs. 3.5 lakhs per kg and sold it at Rs. 4.5 lakhs to 4.75 lakhs per kg in the Capital.

Gurnam had been evading arrest since 2005 after the Punjab police arrested one of his accomplices, Bhajan Lal, and recovered 9.5 kg of heroin from him.

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