Gurugram: 556 cartons of liquor seized from truck on KMP Expressway; driver held

Crime branch officials said Javed was working for a Punjab-based liquor trader and was tasked with transporting the seized consignment from Punjab to Bihar, a dry state

A crime branch team intercepted a container truck and seized 556 cartons containing 5,070 litres of Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) and beer that were allegedly being smuggled beneath 250 sacks of plastic beads near the toll plaza on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway in Bilaspur on Wednesday night.

During inspection, the container was found to contain 250 sacks of plastic beads. However, after unloading the sacks, police found liquor cartons concealed beneath them. (Representational image)

Investigators said they arrested the truck driver, Mohammad Javed, 36, hailing from Singar in Nuh and currently residing in Sasaram in Bihar’s Rohtas district.

Crime branch officials said Javed was working for a Punjab-based liquor trader and was tasked with transporting the seized consignment from Punjab to Bihar, a dry state, after taking a detour via Chhattisgarh. The supplier had allegedly promised to pay him up to ₹60,000 per trip.

A senior police officer said the team received a tip-off about a large consignment of liquor being smuggled via Sonepat, following which a vehicle-checking drive was launched near the KMP toll plaza on Wednesday night.

“After some time, the team spotted the truck bearing a Uttar Pradesh registration number approaching the plaza and stopped it for checking. Javed produced e-way bills of a private firm to show that he was transporting plastic beads meant for industrial use,” the officer said.

During inspection, the container was found to contain 250 sacks of plastic beads. However, after unloading the sacks, police found liquor cartons concealed beneath them.

The truck was taken to the Bilaspur police station, where the entire consignment was unloaded. Police said they recovered 556 cartons containing 5,070 litres of illicit liquor allegedly meant for smuggling to Bihar.

Sandeep Turan, public relations officer of Gurugram police, said the crime branch is questioning Javed to ascertain how many times he had smuggled liquor to Bihar. “Efforts are also under way to trace and arrest the supplier,” he said.

On the complaint of a head constable, an FIR was registered against Javed and other unidentified suspects under the provisions of the Punjab Excise Act (as applicable to Haryana) at the Bilaspur police station on Wednesday night.