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Delhi drug bust: 7 held with 28 LSD stamps, 84 kg of curated marijuana
New Delhi: Delhi Police arrested seven persons, including an Indian Institute of Managementdrop-out, in three operations over the last one week and recovered 28 LSD stamp, 12 grams of MDMA, 84 grams of curated marijuana and 200 grams of hashish, officials said Thursday
New Delhi: Delhi Police arrested seven persons, including an Indian Institute of Managementdrop-out, in three operations over the last one week and recovered 28 LSD stamp, 12 grams of MDMA, 84 grams of curated marijuana and 200 grams of hashish, officials said Thursday.
Citing the ongoing investigation, police did not reveal the names of the arrested men, who also include a Gurugram-based fashion designer.
Police are now probing the role of a few Israeli nationals settled in Goa, who allegedly supplied the drugs, which were transported within Delhi via online delivery platforms.
This is the first time since 2018 that police have seized LSD (Lysergic Acid Diethylamide) stamps, officials said, adding the IIM drop-out is one of the main suppliers of the LSD in the national capital region. Police are now on the lookout for his accomplice, who is also allegedly a drop-out from the same institute.
Last week, Union home minister Amit Shah had directed Delhi Police to crackdown on drug smuggling.
KPS Malhotra, chief of the intelligence fusion and strategic operations (IFSO) unit said, “The curated marijuana was ordered on the dark net and brought to the country via courier and smuggled in from the Indo-Nepal border. Within the city, these people were transporting the drug using online delivery platforms. The analysis of the modus operandi of these gangs revealed that drug smugglers trap college students into experimenting with drugs, who later take to drug smuggling themselves.”
The officer said that in the first operation, a 22-year-old was arrested from Wazirabad area on August 27for the possession of 84 grams of curated marijuana. Curated marijuana, which has recently gained popularity, is a refined and treated version of the substance. It is treated with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). This causes increase in the psychological effects compared to regular marijuana. DCP Malhotra said that unlike regular marijuana commonly seized by police, curated marijuana is more potent and is smuggled in from Russia, the US and Canada after being ordered off the dark net.
“The curated marijuana costs ₹3,000 per gram. Once it is acquired via dark net, it is supplied to college students and young professionals in multinational companies. The supply within Delhi is done by delivery app services,” he added.
The market cost of marijuana is around ₹12,000-16,000 per kg ( ₹12 per gram), police said.
In the second operation, police on August 27 arrested a 24-year-old man, a drop-out of IIM, who was caught with 28 LSD stamps . His questioning led police to the arrest of two men – a Paschim Vihar resident and a fashion designer from Gurugram.
“In this operation, a 28-year-old who trafficked drugs in parties was also arrested. The man is a resident of Ramesh Nagar. This man purchased the LSD stamps from another person, who is also an IIM drop-out. He is on the run. We are now identifying the source of the LSD. A few foreign nationals based in Goa appear to be the main suppliers. The street price of LSD is about ₹5,000 per stamp (size of a regular stamp paper),” Malhotra said.
In the third operation, also on August 27, police arrested two men, who were arrested with 220 grams of hashish, which they had bought from Malana village in Himachal Pradesh.
“We urge citizens not to use drugs. A drug consumer can have immunity from prosecution if the seized amount is small and the person wishes to rehabilitate. But the quantum of punishment increases with the quantity of the drug seized. As far as LSD is concerned, even 0.1 gram of LSD is considered commercial quantity and the user can be booked under sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, which have no provision for bail,” Malhotra added.
