Bangalore:
Custom officials nabbed a 55-year-old man from Chennai who is said to be the kingpin for smuggling Ketamine on Saturday.
Ketamine is popularly known as the date rape drug in the international market.
"Abdul Aleem is considered to be a link for an international drug racket operating from Chennai," said Vijay Bellary, a senior custom officer.
Aleem used to identify men from extremely poor backgrounds and used them as carriers for exporting the drug. He offered them free foreign trips to UK, Kuala Lumpur with a promise of Rs 10,000 on every trip.
The carriers would take the parcel without knowing the contents.
According to officials, Aleem used to send the consignment to his clients abroad, and would hide the drugs in baby cloth lining, shoe soles, and photo frames. Customs officials detained two men on suspicion at the Bengaluru International Airport (BIAL) and detailed questioning led them to crack the racket.
According to Bellary, many carriers haven't even seen Aleem, and were contacted through his associates with air tickets and money, instructing them to handover the parcel to the clients as soon as they reach.
The Custom officials had seized around 400 Kg of Ketamine since the past two years. However, they stumbled upon Aleem's name recently through one of the detained accused, and had been on his train ever since.
"We went to Chennai on a tip-off, and arrested Aleem from his residence," Bellary added.
"We had arrested three carriers in Bangalore, who gave us his name. So far there is not a single case registered in Chennai against Aleem, since he mainly operated from BIAL and a few other states.
In December 2009, we had sent an alert notice to all international airports across India to be alert about his movements," said Bellary.
The accused has been sent to judicial custody until December 18. Bellary said though Ketamine, which is used for anesthetic purposes mainly by veterinarians, is not banned in the country, but is banned for export.
"Ketamine is available in the open market from any licenced druggist, and costs around Rs 35,000 per Kg. But if exported illegally, costs around Rs 3-5 lakh in the international market," Bellary added.
Investigations have revealed that the drug is in great demand in the UK and Malaysia. "Aleem used to buy Ketamine from his contact in Chennai. Efforts are on to nab him," said Bellary.