A combined team of Customs Headquarters Preventive Unit, Shillong and Customs Division Imphal arrested six per- sons including one woman along with Amphetamine tablets worth Rs 50.41 lakh yesterday.
According to a reliable source, a team of Customs Headquarters Preventive Unit, Shillong has been camping at Imphal since the past few days to bust a gang of drug peddlers who sell Amphetamine tablets of foreign origin marked as ‘World is Yours’ (WY).
Acting on a specific information, a trap was laid to arrest these drug peddlers near City Heart Hotel, Majorkhul gate yesterday.
The Customs personnel saw two non-locals moving in a suspicious manner in the afternoon, the source said. They were carrying a bag of fruits and eatable items.
The duo were immediately stopped for frisking by the Customs team, the source said and added that 25 packets of blue polythene bags wrapped with adhesive tape were found concealed inside the fruits and eatables.
Later, the Customs officials broke the packets and detected 200 WY tablets in each polythene packet.
The duo were immediately arrested for further investigation. They have been identified as Ajit Kumar Das (43) s/o Rebati Das of Sibpur (Cachar in Assam) at present staying at Sagolband Moirang Leirak and Bijit Das (58) s/o Bimol Das of Karimganj (Assam) at present staying at Khoyathong.
On further interrogation, one of the non-locals revealed the names of four of their associates.
One of their associates identified as Manoranjan Modak (42) s/o Bangshidhar Modak of Purbha Salbari Jalpaiguri, West Bengal was arrested from Majorkhul near Manipur Press Club.
Later, the Customs team further arrested three others including a woman from near City police station in the night.
They have been identified as Vinod Prasad (39) s/o (L) Lakhan Dev Prasad of Khalisapur Baniapur, Bihar at present staying at Checkon Awang Leirak, Amar Kumar Das (57) s/o (L) Kapalidas of Madhamgram Kolkata at present staying at Soibam Leikai Merry Leirak and Th Nemjalam Mate alias Lalam (30) w/o Th Jamkhoson Mate of Zalenphai Part-3, Mission Veng Moreh.
The arrested persons revealed that the Amphetamine tablets were brought by Th Nemjalam Mate alias Lalam from Myanmar to Imphal.
They also revealed that their gang operates in Imphal area, the source added.
The total number of tablets seized from them was 5041 weighing around 476.10 gm. The tablet is sold at Rs 1000 per tablet in Imphal.
The Customs Department has taken up a case against the arrested persons under Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985.
