Two linked cross-border drugs and arms smuggling module held with 2.2Kg heroin, 6 pistols

CHANDIGARH: In a major breakthrough amidst the ongoing drive to make Punjab a safe and secure state as per directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Amritsar Commissionerate Police has busted a cross-border illegal arms and drug smuggling module with the arrest of two accused persons and recovered 2.225 kg heroin and six sophisticated pistols along with 12 live cartridges from their possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here on Wednesday.

Those arrested have been identified as Sukhdev Singh alias Sukh (23), a resident of village Chicha in Amritsar and Harjinder Singh alias Jinder (37), a resident of village Lodhi Gujjar in Amritsar. Both arrested accused are habitual offenders with criminal cases relating to kidnapping and illegal possession of arms have already been registered against them.

The recovered pistols include one .30 bore (made in China), two 9MM Glock pistols (made in Austria), one 9MM Glock pistol (made in USA) and two .30 bore pistols (made in Turkey).

DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the arrested accused were in contact with cross-border smugglers and were allegedly receiving consignments of heroin and weapons via drones from across the border for further distribution to criminal elements in Punjab.

The DGP said that further investigation is underway to establish forward and backward linkages in this case to identify other members associated with the network.

Sharing operational details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that acting on specific intelligence inputs, a police team apprehended accused Sukhdev alias Sukh and recovered 2.225 kg heroin from his possession. Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused was actively involved in drug smuggling and had procured the heroin consignment for further distribution, he said.

He said that during further investigation, police arrested another accused identified as Harjinder Singh alias Jinder and recovered four pistols from his possession. Based on the disclosure statement made by arrested accused Harjinder alias Jinder, police recovered two additional pistols from a location pinpointed by him, he added.

The CP said that accused Sukhdev alias Sukh was also wanted in a case registered at Police Station Chheharta, in which his four associates had earlier been arrested with the recovery of seven pistols and 12 live cartridges.