Ganja smuggling racket busted at OYO hotel; two persons held

Hyderabad: Excise enforcement officials busted a ganja smuggling racket operating out of an OYO hotel in Kondapur, arresting two individuals and seizing 17 kg of contraband valued at Rs 9 lakh. The Excise State Task Force raided OYO Highlights hotel, where the suspects were storing bulk quantities of ganja transported from Assam and packaging them into small sachets for distribution to local customers. The arrested individuals were identified as Dheeraj Das, aged 39, and Rabali Ali, aged 25, both natives of Assam.

Investigating officials revealed that Dheeraj Das and Rabali Ali previously worked as security guards in Hyderabad. Finding their salaries insufficient, they quit their jobs to venture into narcotics trafficking. Posing as regular guests, the duo rented hotel rooms to establish an operational base for packaging and selling smuggled ganja. Enforcement officers questioned the accused regarding their procurement sources to trace further leads connected to the smuggling network across interstate routes. The successful operation highlights ongoing vigilance by excise authorities against illicit drug networks operating within commercial lodging facilities across the city. Legal proceedings and further inquiries are currently underway to uncover additional accomplices involved in the illegal trade.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The Hans India