By IANS,
Nawanshahr (Punjab): Punjab Police claimed to have busted a drug racket with the arrest of three Punjab residents and a non-resident Indian (NRI) here Friday. Police also seized 1.8 kg of heroin from their possession.
District police chief Rakesh Aggarwal told IANS: “On a tip-off, police have arrested four smugglers who also have strong international links. We also seized 1.8 kg heroin, worth Rs.9 crore (Rs. 90 million) in the international market, from their possession.”
According to police, three of the arrested accused, Jagtar Singh alias Tari, Satinder Singh and Gurpreet Singh are residents of Punjab towns while the fourth accused, Harpinder Singh, is a citizen of Canada.
“Jagtar Singh already has a criminal background. He was arrested earlier in a case of smuggling of fake currency notes with the face value of Rs.50 lakh and his brother is also into this business. They used to bring fake currency notes from Thailand,” added Aggarwal.
Harpinder Singh, an NRI, was involved in a murder case, which is still pending in a court. Police said he was from a very rich family but the lure of easy money brought him into the drugs racket.
“We suspect their links with different countries like Dubai, Thailand, Pakistan and Nepal. There is a strong probability that apart from this drug racket, they were also smuggling fake currency notes across the border. Their interrogation is on and very soon we will reach some conclusion,” Aggarwal said.