BHUBANESWAR: The Special Task Force of Crime Branch nabbed wanted inter-state drugs supplier, SK Raja (29) of Sahadevkhunta in Balasore district, from the Capital on Sunday night.
Acting on a tip-off that he was in the Capital, STF raided the area and nabbed him in connection with a case registered against him under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and Arms Act in July this year. They also seized a 6.75 mm pistol, live ammunition, Rs 1 lakh cash, six mobiles and some ATM cards.
An STF officer said Raja used to procure brown sugar from Murshidabad in West Bengal and sell it in Odisha as well as other parts of the country. The officer said Raja is suspected to have links with international drug peddlers also and was supplying the contraband in Odisha, West Bengal, Goa, Rajasthan and Nepal. He is also suspected to have links in Bangladesh. Raja was supplying brown sugar to drug peddlers like Chhota, Sanju, Paku, and others in Khurda district after which the contraband was being sold in Nayagarh district and other parts of the State.
This apart, he was supplying the contraband to drug peddlers in Balasore and Jaleswar. The accused was also wanted by Balasore police.
STF had earlier arrested Raja’s associates SK Azbahar, SK Azad and Ramakanta Sahu and had recovered 130-gram brown sugar, one country-made pistol and a car from them. They are in judicial custody now.
“We collected information from his associates that Raja used to stay in Kolkata, Goa and Nepal to evade arrest and run his illegal business without any hindrance,” an STF officer said.
Raja was produced before a court here on Monday and STF officers urged the court to allow them to take him on 7-day-remand to further question him regarding his business and international links.