In a major haul, Haryana drug control authorities, along with local police, busted an international drug cartel trying to smuggle out COVID-19 and cancer treatment drugs to Iraq through special evacuation flights being run under Vande Bharat Mission.
The authorities have nabbed four Iraqi nationals and an Uzbek woman from two different locations in Gurgaon along with medicines worth Rs 45 lakh and around Rs 75 lakh in cash. The accused have been nabbed and booked under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
According to Amandeep Chauhan, drugs controller, Gurgaon, COVID-19 treatment drugs like Remdesivir (48 vials), Fabiflu (55 strips), Lopikast (18 packs) were seized. The gang was planning to smuggle them to Iraq, which is facing a medicine shortage, and sell at inflated prices. According to sources, Gurgaon has so far managed to ensure supply of COVID-19 treatment drugs at MRP and has thus caught the attention of drug smugglers. Remdesivir, which costs Rs 5,400 a vial here, is reportedly sold at Rs 1 lakh a vial in Iraq. Fabiflu strip sold at Rs 2,500 here is priced at Rs 8,000 there and Lopikast vial which is Rs 3,990 here is sold at Rs 15,000 there. Similarly, the cancer treatment drug Palpaze priced at Rs 31,666 is sold in Iraq at Rs 2 lakh. The gang was caught with 78 strips of the same.
“The district drug control department, acting on a tip-off, along with local police, carried out a night-long raid at two different locations in sector 57 and 47 and nabbed five with medicines and money. Seizure includes psychotropic, narcotic, COVID-19 and cancer treatment drugs. The police are interrogating the accused,” said Ashok Meena, commissioner, Food & Drugs Administration, Haryana.
According to DSP of chief minister's flying squad, Inderjeet Yadav, two separate FIRs had been filed. The five have been dentified as Aws Raad, Akram Faiz, Ohnnad and Othmana and one Uzbek woman Nilu Far.
A senior investigation official said that the accused confessed to running a medicine smuggling cartel for the past five years and used medical tourists to ship consignments. Hit by COVID-19, they roped in Iraqis in India with student visas to take the medicines hidden in their luggage in the special evacuation flights. The authorities have put aviation authorities on alert to keep a lookout for COVID-19 treatment drugs being carried by passengers.
The other seized drugs included intoxicating medicines like Clonazepam Tablets (1,190 strips), Phenobarbitone injection (718) and epileptic drugs like Flycompa (412 strips) and Atropine Eye Drop (100).
