Three held with cannabis worth ₹50 lakh in Sonbhadra

1.34 quintal cannabis, car, mobile phones and cash recovered; police probe inter-state smuggling network

: Three alleged members of an inter-state cannabis smuggling gang were arrested from the Preetnagar area under Chopan police station in Sonbhadra, police said.

The arrested accused were identified as Mukund Yadav, 24, Rohit Sidar, 23, and Ashish Maurya, 19, said Chopan police station station house officer inspector Gopal Ji Gupta. (For representation only)

Sonbhadra police recovered 1 quintal 340 grams of illicit cannabis, estimated to be worth around ₹50 lakh, along with a car, three mobile phones and ₹1,210 in cash, circle officer Randhir Mishra said. The total estimated value of the recoveries is around ₹62 lakh, police said, adding that a joint police team arrested the three accused in connection with inter-state cannabis smuggling.

A case has been registered at Chopan police station under Sections 8/20/27A/29/60 of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. Further legal proceedings are underway. The vehicle allegedly used for smuggling has been seized under Section 207 of the Motor Vehicles (MV) Act, the officer said.

During interrogation, the arrested accused allegedly told police that the cannabis had been procured from Odisha and loaded into the vehicle in Ambikapur. They were transporting it through Sonbhadra to deliver it to a person residing in Navadhiya under Santnagar police station in Mirzapur district.

Police said a person had contacted the accused to purchase the cannabis and had transferred money through PhonePe on various dates. Evidence has also emerged regarding communication and financial transactions between the individuals involved in the alleged smuggling through mobile phones and online platforms.