Hyderabad: A gang of five persons including three from Andhra Pradesh, who were smuggling ganja from agency areas near Visakhapatnam, were apprehended by the Special Operations Team staff of Rachakonda on Tuesday. In the joint operation by the SOT of the LB Nagar zone and the Meerpet police, about 82 kg of ganja which was meant for sale in the city was seized and mobile phones recovered from the accused.
On Monday, about 60 kg of ganja was placed in a bus belonging to a private travels company and dispatched to the city. When the contraband was being delivered to a house in Badangpet, when the SOT apprehended the gang members. The accused were identified as P. Teja, 28, an MCom student from Donkaraya in AP, Kamoji Kondal, 31, a barber from Badangpet, Subedar Vinod Singh, 32, of Dhoolpet, V. Nagarjuna, 21, and C. Chinnabbai, 22, of Vanajajula in AP. Another accused, Raju of Odisha, is absconding.
During interrogation, police found that in March 2017, Kondal was arrested in AP under the NDPS Act. While in jail, he came in contact with Teja’s brother and decided to continue ganja smuggling after release. In November 2017, he was again arrested by Meerpet police and released in June 2018.
Teja purchased ganja from agency areas like Chintapalli, Paderu along AP-Odisha border, and supplied this to Kondal. They employed Chinnabbai and Nagarjuna as mediators to transport ganja from AP and deliver to Kondal’s house. Rachakonda Additional Commissioner G. Sudheer Babu said, “The ganja was stuffed into 20 packets, each weighing 2 kg. While delivering this, the accused persons were caught at Kondal’s house on Tuesday. Vinod came to the house to purchase ganja and was also caught.”
