Drug busts: Eleven traffickers held

RAWALPINDI:

The Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) Rawalpindi on Sunday foiled several attempts to smuggle narcotics and seized over 6kg of heroin and 17kg of hashish. The force also arrested eight suspected traffickers.

ANF officials conducted an operation at a car parking area at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport Islamabad and detained a passenger and seized 6kg of heroin concealed in a trolley bag. The accused, identified as Muhammad Zulqarnain Sohail, a resident of Faisalabad, was intending to travel to Abidjan (Ivory Coast) by Qatar Airways.

Another ANF team during routine checks near Varan Bus Stand in Rawalpindi Cantonment intercepted a Suzuki Mehran (LEB-9281) and seized 3kg of hashish. The ANF took Jibran Masih and Om Parkash, residents of Rawalpindi, into custody.

Another ANF team intercepted a Suzuki pickup (W-3463-Peshawar) at the Fateh Jang Motorway Interchange and seized 7kg of hashish from a car and arrested the driver, identified as Sajid Khan, a resident of Khyber Agency.

The ANF team also intercepted a passenger van (LES-4703) near Ghousia bus stand at Pirwadhai Mor and seized 7kg of hashish from a vehicle. The team arrested four suspects — Noor Ahmed, a technician at the PAF Chaklala, Inamul Haq, Wahid Muhammad and Jalal.

Another ANF team seized a consignment comprising small tablets at Al-Zohaib cargo office, on Airport Road and confiscated 250 grams of heroin concealed inside a consignment. The consignment was booked by Muhammad Afzal, a resident of Gujrat, and was to be received by Haider Ali, a resident of Litton, England.

Also on Sunday, police arrested three drug peddlers during a search operation in different areas.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 24^th, 2015.