Police have busted three illegal arms and drug trafficking networks in Amritsar with the arrest of 11 persons, including two juveniles, and recovered two hand grenades, 12 sophisticated pistols and 310.10 grams of heroin.
Punjab Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Tuesday that preliminary investigations had revealed links between the arrested accused and foreign-based handlers and gangsters who allegedly facilitated the supply of illegal weapons and narcotics through drone-based consignments.
According to the DGP, the recovered weapons were allegedly being used to open fire at houses and shops to intimidate people and pressurise them into meeting extortion demands.
The arrests were made during three separate operations conducted by teams of Amritsar Commissionerate Police.
Those arrested have been identified as Bobby, 21, Samayal Singh, 18, Satmol Singh alias Thekedar, 20, Harpreet Singh alias Happy alias Bhundi, 23, Akashdeep Singh, 22, Akashdeep Singh alias Akash, 20, Shamsher Singh alias Shera, 20, Gurbir Singh alias Billa, 18, Vishal Singh alias Kalu, 24, and two juveniles.
The recovery includes three .30-bore pistols (Made in China), two .30-bore PX5 Storm pistols, one 9mm Zigana, one 9mm Glock, three other .30-bore pistols, one .32-bore pistol and one .315-bore country-made weapon. Police also recovered 33 live cartridges and impounded a motorcycle.
Amritsar Commissioner of Police Harmanbir Singh Gill said Ranjit Avenue police station teams arrested Bobby, Samayal and Satmol in the first operation. Four illegal pistols and 10 live cartridges were initially recovered from them. Subsequently, three more pistols were seized following disclosures made during investigation.
In the second operation, Chheharta police arrested Harpreet along with a juvenile and recovered two pistols and four live cartridges. Further investigation led to the arrest of another juvenile and two associates, Akashdeep Singh and Akashdeep Singh alias Akash. Police subsequently recovered two live hand grenades and 15 live cartridges.
In the third operation, Sultanwind police arrested Shamsher, Vishal and Gurbir. Three pistols, four live cartridges and 310.10 grams of heroin were recovered during the operation.
Gill said the accused were allegedly in contact with foreign-based handlers who facilitated the supply of illegal weapons and narcotics through drones for further distribution among criminal elements.
The police have registered three separate FIRs in connection with the recoveries.
DGP Yadav said further investigation was underway to establish the backward and forward linkages of the networks, identify other associates and dismantle the wider illegal arms and drug supply chains.
The latest crackdown highlights the police investigation into the alleged nexus between cross-border drone-based smuggling, illegal weapons and organised extortion networks operating in Punjab.
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