Rajasthan Police arrests wanted drug kingpin carrying Rs 1 lakh reward from Kolkata

Jaipur, Jan 16 (PTI) In a major breakthrough, the Rajasthan Police's Anti-Narcotics Task Force and Anti-Terrorism Squad have arrested one of the state's top ten most-wanted criminal from Kolkata, officials said on Friday.

Ramesh Kumar (31), a resident of Barmer, who carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh, had been evading arrest for nearly eight years.

IG ANTF and ATS Vikas Kumar said Ramesh is among the top ten wanted criminals in Rajasthan and a primary kingpin of the illegal MD (Mephedrone) trade in the western part of the state.

The arrested was made after a special operation lasting nearly six months. The accused was wanted in about three dozen criminal cases registered across Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Telangana and Karnataka. These offences include drug trafficking, theft, assault and kidnapping for ransom.

Ramesh allegedly established several illegal drug manufacturing units in Rajasthan, including factories previously busted in Jodhpur's Kudi Bhagtasni area, Barmer's Sedwa region and parts of Sirohi district, the IG said.

According to the IG, Ramesh learned a low-cost method of manufacturing MD in Maharashtra. He produced the drug for Rs 1 lakh per kg, which was then sold for nearly Rs 30 lakh per kg in the market. He amassed large assets through this trade.

The accused frequently changed his identity and used multiple aliases to evade the police. Apart from narcotics trafficking, he was involved in vehicle theft, liquor smuggling, robbery and extortion.

Intelligence inputs recently indicated that Ramesh had shifted to Kolkata and was planning to expand his network. After tracking his movements between Kolkata and Pune, ANTF and ATS teams were deployed in West Bengal. He was arrested following targeted surveillance, the IG said.

At the time of his arrest, Ramesh was posing as a chemistry teacher and chemical trader to hide his activities. He has been brought to Rajasthan for further interrogation, which is expected to lead to the exposure of a wider interstate narcotics network, he added. PTI SDA AKY AKY