The Abdullapurmet police along with L.B. Nagar Special Operation Team nabbed a gang that was smuggling ganja from Malkangiri of Odisha to Maharashtra via Hyderabad on Sunday.
Rachakonda police commissioner Mahesh M Bhagwat addressing media persons on Monday said the total seizure was valued at about ₹1.30 crore.
“The accused had been procuring ganja from the Andhra-Odisha Border since 2019 for ₹ 3,000 per kg and selling it to local peddlers in various parts of Maharashtra at five times the price or more,” he said.
On Sunday, the police team nabbed the gang near Pedda Amberpet on the entry approach from Outer Ring Road.
According to the police, Karan Parushram Parkale, the main accused, hired three others, Ajay Mahadeo Ethape, Santosh Anil Gaikwad and Akash Shivaji Chaudhari and motivated them to make easy money through ganja smuggling.
Parkale, police said, had a narcotic related history with arrests by Vanasthalipuram, Ghatkesar and Abdullapurmet police in 2020.
The four had started from Maharashtra, and on the route at Suryapet, picked up two others, Bhukya Sai Kumar and Ambothu Nagaraj, mediators to negotiate the price, and they were also promised ₹500 commission per kg.
The 590 kg ganja procured in Malkangiri was tightly packed and concealed beneath the seats and in the boot space.
Police booked the six members under related provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
