WARANGAL: In a joint operation, the Inthezargunj police and Drug Control Team apprehended four interstate drug peddlers for illegally smuggling twenty kilograms of hash oil worth Rs 2.50 crore and seized two mobile phones.
This is the first such significant seizure in the Warangal Police Commissionerate limits.
The accused were identified as Hantal Sannu (23), Hantal Sanyasi (23), H Krishna (56), a native of Chitrakonda mandal in Odisha's Malkangiri district; and Kandela Chinnababu (56), a native of Gudem Mandal in Andhra Pradesh's Alluri Sitharama Raju district.
The absconding accused was identified as Kilo Pandu.
Disclosing the details to the media on Tuesday, Warangal Commissioner of Police (CP) Sunpreeth Singh stated that the main accused, Hantal Sannu, was cultivating ganja plants in his native village and selling them through local networks. He sold it to local buyers for double the price; he used the money for his lavish life and easy earning of money.
However, as the income was insufficient for their expenses, Sannu came into contact with the absconding accused Kilo Pandu, who introduced them to the process of extracting hash oil from ganja plants.
Following Pandu’s instructions, the gang cultivated ganja, and, using specialised equipment brought by him, they prepared 40 kilograms of hash oil. The accused Pandu took 20 kilograms, while the remaining 20 kilograms were divided by the arrested accused; they each carried about 5 kilograms of hash oil, and they packed it in small packets for sale in Mumbai.
On the night of April 19, the accused boarded the Konark Express from Tuni Railway Station in Andhra Pradesh State to reach Mumbai. However, suspecting police checks at Warangal Railway Station, they deboarded from the train and later planned to continue their journey by bus.
On credible information, the police teams found that the four accused were moving suspiciously near the railway goods shed area at the Warangal bus stand on the Monday morning. Upon search, the police teams found hash oil and recovered it, and the accused were arrested, said Sunpreeth Singh.