The five suspects were arrested late on the night of Wednesday 19 August in the Ramgarhtal area.[1] A joint ANTF and UP ATS team intercepted an Ertiga bearing registration number GJ-15 AA-8841 near the LIC office on Deoria Bypass late on Wednesday, August 19, and officers recovered hydroponic OG cannabis from the accused during a search of the vehicle.[1] Police identified the arrested men as Suraj Singh and Satyam Singh of Karmahi village in Kandhai, Pratapgarh, Prince Patel of Grid Road, Navsari, Ratnam Trivedi of Katargam, Surat, and Bhavin of Daman Chowk, Bhavnagar.[1] The ANTF Gorakhpur unit in-charge lodged a first information report for alleged drug trafficking at Ramgarhtal police station.[1]
Police recovered 3.085 kg of hydroponic cannabis, which the ANTF estimated to be worth around Rs 1.40 crore.[1] Officers also seized the Ertiga car, five mobile phones and Rs 30,390 in cash.[1] According to sources, the high-value cannabis was allegedly being smuggled into Gujarat and supplied to clubs and discos, where it was sold to young people at premium prices.[1]
During interrogation, the accused allegedly said the hydroponic cannabis sourced from Thailand was being transported to Gujarat via Delhi.[1] In Surat and Bhavnagar, the cannabis was allegedly divided into smaller packets and sold to users at high prices, while investigators suspect supplies were delivered to clubs and discos based on demand.[1] During questioning, the accused allegedly told investigators that a youth had supplied the OG cannabis in a vehicle bearing a Deoria registration number.[1] The supplier’s identity and address have not yet been established, while ATS and ANTF teams have found indications pointing to foreign links in the suspected smuggling network.[1] Investigators are now trying to establish how the cannabis allegedly travelled from Thailand to India and identify the channels used to transport it further.[1] The accused’s mobile phones are being examined to trace their contacts and the wider network.[1]
