In a significant breakthrough during the ongoing investigation by the Ahmedabad Crime Branch, it was revealed today that a massive consignment of powdered marijuana weighing around 1,100 kg was delivered to four other cities before reaching Ahmedabad. The marijuana was loaded onto a truck in Odisha, with Gujarat as the final destination.
The Crime Branch, which had earlier seized 194 kg of marijuana worth ₹42 lakh from a warehouse in the Vatva GIDC area on September 6, has now arrested the owner of the warehouse.
Further investigation has disclosed that this was the second time the contraband had been stored in the warehouse, raising concerns about a well-established drug trafficking network.
Ajit Rajiaan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch), said, “We believe this is not the first time consignments have been delivered to Ahmedabad. Our primary investigation reveals that packages were also delivered to Bharuch, Kheda, Vadodara, and Anand, among other locations.”
The police suspect that over the past two years, consignments of marijuana have been regularly shipped from Odisha to Gujarat. The operation was well-coordinated, with the truck drivers and helpers frequently changed after two or three deliveries to avoid detection. The delivery locations varied, with many packages being dropped off in farming lands across multiple cities.
In the drug bust of September 6, the Crime Branch had arrested seven individuals in connection with the warehouse seizure. The accused were identified as Manikandan Mudaliar (47), Kumar Arun Pandey (30), Sanjay Shahu (36), Susanta Gouda (34), Ajay Tufan (27), Labha Gouda (42), and Sandeep Kumar Shah (23).
The marijuana is believed to have originated from Ganjam village in Odisha and was intended for wide distribution across Gujarat. The Crime Branch is continuing its investigation to expose the full extent of the drug distribution network, which is suspected to span multiple cities.
Ajit Rajiaan added, “This operation is part of a larger network that has been delivering consignments across various cities for some time. We are now working to trace the origins of this operation.”