Odisha STF Arrests Inter-State Ganja Smuggler Who Escaped During Police Operation

Bhubaneswar: The Special Task Force (STF) of Odisha Police arrested a notorious inter-state ganja smuggler, who is involved in trafficking cannabis in different states.

The accused, identified as Sarat Kumar Dey of East Bardhawan in West Bengal, has been trafficking ganja in Odisha, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Bihar, a press release said on Thursday.

In the main case, a huge quantity of ganja weighing more than 43 quintals had been was seized in Mohana area of Gajapati district. Inter-states drug traffickers were involved in the case in which Sarat is the mastermind and the main accused.

During search, Rs 1,25,000/- and other incriminating materials were seized from him. The accused will be produced in the Gajapati court.

On August 20 this year, Sarat and his associate Promad Kumar Tandi were transporting a huge quantity of ganja in a truck, having original West Bengal registration number but fitted with a duplicate Odisha number. A patrolling party of Gajapati police detected the movement.

Seeing the police party, both escaped from the spot leaving the vehicle. During search of the vehicle huge quantity of contraband ganja weighing 4335 kg were seized. Based on the gravity of the case, STF was took over the case and investigated.

The accused was earlier also involved in a number of cases relating to narcotics, robbery, and rioting, the release said, adding that he had also once escaped from the custody of police.

It is pertinent to mention here that the father of the accused, Ekadashi Dey, was also a ganja peddler who has been convicted by the court and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for 10 years. He is now in Puri jail. Further investigation is on, it added.