Police rescue abducted peddlers who sold flour in name of party drug

NEW DELHI: The police have rescued two men who were kidnapped after they sold wheat flour to two of their clients in Delhi in the name of pseudo ephedrine, a party drug.

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Sunil Kumar Thapa, 34, and Mohammad Ali ,32, were arrested on Sunday after police tracked them through mobile phone surveillance. Lalneisung, 42, and Zosangliana ,36, were rescued from Moradabad, 145 kilometres from Delhi.

The police said all the four are part of an inter-state drug trafficking ring.

The Shillong Police approached their Delhi counterparts after Lalneisung’s wife registered a complaint on Friday. She told the police that her husband had gone to Delhi in the first week of September with Zosangliana and they have been kidnapped. She said the kidnappers have demanded ₹15 lakh ransom.

“Lalneisung’s wife deposited ₹3 lakh in a bank account in Delhi and also paid ₹1.40 lakh through hawala. Zosangliana’s wife also paid ₹5 lakh through hawala,” said joint commissioner of police, crime, RavindraYadav.

“However, when they were not set free, Lalneisung’s relative approached the police,” he said. The police started tracking the phone numbers and raids were conducted in Delhi and Agra, said Yadav.

Lalneisung, an ex-serviceman, and Zosangliana worked for one Ashish. They used to get Ashish customers of pseudoephedrine and charged commission.

Ghani Bhai, a customer , approached Ashish through Zosangliana. “Ghani Bhai paid ₹30 lakh to Ashish. He took the money and vanished. Ghani later realised that the packets given to him contained wheat flour. To take revenge, he abducted Lalneisung and Zosangliana,” Yadav said.

Ghani abducted the two and called their families for ransom.

Based on the technical surveillance, the police got a tip-off that the abductors will visit Anand Vihar bus terminal road and nabbed Ghani’s associates, Thapa and Ali. Ghani is yet to be arrested.

Police also recovered four mobile phones and 8 SIM cards from their possession.