Hyderabad: The Cyberabad Special Operations Team has arrested five members of a gang allegedly involved in smuggling and sale of ganja. The police have seized 803 kg of the contraband, a DCM container and a car from their possession. The arrested persons have been identified as Somnath Khara (34), a resident of Malkangiri, Odisha, Sanjeev Kumar Holappa Okare (48), a resident of Bidar, Harade Sanjeev Vittal Reddy (35), a resident of Bidar, Karnataka, Sunil Khosla, a resident of Odisha and Jag Suna (26), a resident of Odisha. Two others – Ramu, a resident of Araku and Suresh Maruti Patil, a resident of Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra – are absconding.
According to Cyberabad DCP SOT D Srinivas, the seven-member gang was involved in the sale, transportation and supply of ganja to its customers in various parts of the country through DCMs and lorries. Recently, Somnath Khare had struck a deal with Sanjeev Vittal to supply ganja in Navi Mumbai. D. Srinivas said, “On August 1, Sanjeev came to Vizag in a DCM to take delivery of barrels of chemical solvents from a company and take it to Maharashtra. He also took ganja from Somnath to take it to Navi Mumbai. The consignment of ganja was being transported in the DCM under the cover of chemical solvents. On receiving information, the SOT team caught them in Shamshabad.” The officer said that the price of one kg of ganja in the market is Rs 35,000. Efforts are being made to catch Suresh and Ramu who are absconding.
