BHUBANESWAR: A woman drug peddler was arrested and 34 grams of brown sugar seized from her possession at Laxmi Sagar on Friday. The market price of the seized drugs has been estimated as Rs 3,40,000. The accused has been identified as Aisa Bibi (34), a resident of Haldiapada under Laxmi Sagar police limits.
Acting on an tip off, the Excise Intelligence and Enforcement Bureau, Cuttack, raided the residence of the accused and found the contraband in her possession.
Preliminary interrogation revealed that she has been engaged in this trade for about a couple of years. She and her husband, who was out of town, used to procure drugs from Midnapore in West Bengal.
The duo then sold those in small packets, mainly near the old station area. A major chunk of their customers were college students and petty criminals.
A mobile phone and `1,250 in cash has also been seized from Bibi’s residence. She has been booked under Section 21(B) of the NDPS act and forwarded to court.
Recently, a woman was arrested at Charampa railway station in Bhadrak for allegedly possessing and selling drugs. Incidentally, in the last six months six women have been arrested from different parts of the State by the Excise Department for selling narcotics locally.
Most of these women, in their mid 30s are highly professional in carrying out the business. “They arouse less suspicion and it is always difficult to search them,” said an officer of the Intelligence Department.
Traffickers who run these standalone selling points procure drugs from various places in West Bengal. These are then smuggled into the State through Balasore.
Apart from train connectivity, a number of buses ply through this porous border, which has proven to be a safe passage for the drug peddlers.