Andhra woman, pushed into drug peddling by lover, held in Bengaluru

The woman confessed to the police that she came to Bengaluru city to deliver a package of marijuana during the lockdown.

A 25-year-old woman from Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh has been arrested in Karnataka's Bengaluru while delivering a packet of marijuana, a newspaper reported citing police officials on Thursday. Police from Andhra Pradesh arrested Renuka from Sadashivanagar police limits in Bengaluru city, Kannada Prabha reported.

The woman had been coaxed into peddling marijuana by her "drug supplier lover", said the police. (Reuters Photo/Representative image)

Police said the woman had been coaxed into peddling marijuana by her "drug supplier lover", Kannada Prabha e-paper reported citing UNI. She confessed to the police that she came to Bengaluru city to deliver a package of marijuana during the lockdown.

According to the police, the woman was in love with a man named Kadapa Siddharth. She became close with him while studying engineering in Tamil Nadu's Chennai but their parents did not approve of their relationship. She left her home following a rift with her parents over the relationship.

Siddharth, a procuring agent of marijuana from Odisha, later introduced her to another man, Sudhansu, and told her that he will include her in his business. Siddharth, who was aware of the drug peddling business in Bengaluru city, guided Renuka. In her confession to the police, she has said she and her lover dreamt of luxurious life and wanted to make big money. She added that she used to sell 50 grams of marijuana for ₹2000 to ₹3000.

Following the arrest of Renuka, Siddharth and Sudhansu have gone missing. Sadashivanagar Police along with Andhra Pradesh police are jointly investigating the case.

The Sadashivanagar Police are now looking for more links in the marijuana trade and the interstate connection to the drug route in Bengaluru. They are also in touch with the police from Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.