CROSS-BORDER DRUG CARTELS LINKED TO FOREIGN-BASED HANDLERS BUSTED IN AMRITSAR; THREE HELD WITH 4KG ICE, 1KG HEROIN
— ARRESTED PERSONS WERE COORDINATING WITH PAK-BASED SMUGGLERS USING WHATSAPP: DGP GAURAV YADAV
— FURTHER INVESTIGATIONS ON, MORE ARRESTS AND RECOVERIES LIKELY: CP ASR GURPREET BHULLAR
CHANDIGARH/AMRITSAR, December 10 (WISHAVWARTA):- In a major multi-layered crackdown amidst the ongoing drive to make Punjab a drug-free state as per directions of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, Amritsar Commissionerate Police has dismantled a highly organised cross-border drug cartels linked to foreign-based handlers with the arrest of three operatives and recovered 4.083 Kg Methamphetamine, commonly known as ICE, and 1.032 Kg Heroin from their possession, said Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav here on Wednesday.
Those arrested have been identified as Balwinder Singh alias Binder (25), a resident village Daoke in Amritsar; Navtej Singh (33), a native of village Mahwa in Amritsar and currently residing at village in Tarn Taran and Mahabir Singh (32), a resident of village Kaaliya Sakataran in Tarn Taran. Apart from recovering contraband, police teams have also recovered Rs 2500 drug money and impounded their one Car and Activa Scooter.
DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary investigation has revealed that the arrested persons were coordinating with the smugglers in Pakistan and Abroad using WhatsApp. Further investigation is ongoing to trace backward and forward linkages of the network, he said.
Sharing operational details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said that the police had arrested suspect Balwinder Singh alias Binder with 35 gm ICE from his possession and during interrogation the latter revealed his links with Pakistan-based trafficker, who shared drop locations through WhatsApp. Acting on the accused’s disclosures, police recovered 2.042 kg of ICE drug, bringing the total recovery from him to 2.077 kg from his possession, he said.
He said that in a parallel operation, police intercepted suspect Navtej Singh with 40 gm ICE drug. Further investigation revealed that the latter had previously worked in Doha, Qatar, where he connected with a handler there, he said, while adding that this handler later shifted operations to India through WhatsApp-based instructions. Probe has revealed that Navtej had worked as a ground courier, retrieving drug packets and supplying them further. Based on his disclosures, police recovered an additional 1.966 ICE drug, bringing the total recovered to 2.006 kg.
The CP said that in a third interception, police arrested Mahabir Singh with 1.032 kg heroin from his possession. Investigations uncovered that the latter was receiving consignments from a Pakistan-based smuggler using drone drops, indicating an advanced method of cross-border narcotics transport.
In this regard, three separate cases— FIR No. 337 dated 05-12-2025 under sections 21-C and 29 of the NDPS Act and FIR No. 340 dated 09-12-2025 under section 21-C of the NDPS Act both at Police Station Hakima and FIR No. 251 dated 07-12-2025 under sections 22-B and 22-C of the NDPS Act at Police Station Chheharta— have been registered.
