Hyderabad: The Telangana State Anti-Narcotics Bureau (TSNAB) officials, on Wednesday, January 17, busted a secretly operating drug racket from an anesthetist’s house in Asifnagar. Officials seized a total of 57 Fentanyl Citrate injection vials, Rs 6 lakh cash, and arrested the anesthetist’s wife, who also worked as an anesthetist.
Fentanyl is a synthetic drug that is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. It is provided to patients who suffer intense pain during or after surgeries. The commercial quantity of this drug is just 0.1 gram, considering its dangerous nature.
According to reports, the primary suspect, Dr. Ahsan Mustafa Khan, had unreasonably withdrawn the scheduled drug from the pharmacy attached to the private hospital he worked at. Based on this information, TSNAB officials kept a stern vigil on him.
“Regular watch on this doctor’s house revealed that every evening, a delivery executive collected a parcel from his wife, Lubna Nazeeb Khan, and delivered it at a house in Cyberabad. This happening every day signaled addiction,” the officials revealed.
Meanwhile, Mustafa Khan left for Kuwait when the operation was being planned. The officials did not wait for his return and immediately raided his house.
The parcel delivery agent revealed to police that he had delivered four vials to the addicted victim on Wednesday, for which he had paid Rs 17,500 to Mustafa Khan via the Porter App. Following the revelations, his house was raided, and the injection vials and cash were seized.
“While the doctor’s wife was taken into custody, we are waiting for his arrival to find out how many more people he is supplying the drug to. We will also take up inventory checking at the hospital with the drug controller department officials,” said a TSNAB official.
The police also arrested the person who was addicted to the injection. Authorities are now awaiting Dr. Mustafa’s return from Kuwait, after which he is expected to be taken into custody.
