EAGLE probe finds Cyberabad cops, peddlers nexus in ganja racket

Hyderabad: Telangana’s anti-narcotics wing EAGLE has arrested four ganja peddlers in Balanagar and seized five motorcycles, three of them without number plates, used to run a “dead-drop” delivery network, and is now examining whether local Cyberabad Police personnel had links to the racket.

Investigators found the operation was larger than a street-level racket. An analysis of payments the group received put its turnover at around Rs 20 lakh, and as many as 31 ganja suppliers from Odisha would travel to Balanagar to hand over consignments, with the accused arranging their stay at various places in the area, police told The Times of India.

How the deliveries worked

The three main accused, identified as Durga Prasad, B Kiran and B Kamalakar, would ride out on the unregistered bikes once an order came in, leave the ganja at a public spot, photograph the drop point and send both the picture and the location to the buyer, avoiding any face-to-face handover. 

Police moved in on August 12 after a tip-off, arresting the group at their Balanagar home. The accused reportedly tried to create a diversion and flee as EAGLE personnel closed in.

Cops on friendly terms with drug peddlers

The nexus angle emerged from what EAGLE officials told TOI was an early but troubling lead. A sub-inspector and a constable from the local Cyberabad Police were said to be on friendly terms with the accused and visited their house on occasion. 

“A probe has to be conducted to find out whether there is any nexus,” EAGLE officials were quoted as saying, adding that preliminary findings suggested the accused may have been functioning as informers for the SI and some of his subordinates.

Separately, sources within the Cyberabad Police told TOI

 that the sub-inspector had claimed he misplaced his walkie-talkie during a recent bandobust duty while travelling in a vehicle belonging to one of the accused, a claim now itself under inquiry, since it establishes that the officer and the accused knew each other and had shared transport.