Jammu: Questioning of an accused arrested in a counterfeit currency case led to the seizure of cocaine worth over Rs 19 crore in Jammu and Kashmir’s Samba district, police said on Monday.
On February 3, a written complaint was lodged at Bari Brahmana police station by a branch manager of Punjab National Bank, regarding depositing of fake currency notes.
The bank official had alleged that Dil Mohd, a resident of Digiana Ashram, had deposited fake currency notes having a face value of Rs 9,000, a police spokesman said.
He said a probe was launched after registering an FIR under relevant sections of BNS at Bari Brahmana police state. During the investigation, police obtained bank account statements of the accused who is presently residing at Jalalabad locality of Sunjwan in Jammu.
Scrutiny of the accounts revealed balances of about Rs 18 lakh in J&K Bank and Rs 2.40 lakh in PNB, the spokesman said, adding a special investigation team was set up by the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Samba to ascertain the source of the bank balances, given that the accused was working as a driver by profession.
During questioning, he said the accused disclosed that he is selling cocaine since long and had earned the said amount through drug trafficking.
Police recovered two packets of cocaine, weighing approximately 1937.80 grams, in cardboards wrapped with cello tape hidden in the garage at his workplace in Bari Brahmana, the spokesman said, adding relevant sections of NDPS Act were added in the case.
More arrests and recoveries are expected at the disclosure of the arrested drug peddler, he said.
Meanwhile, two drug peddlers were arrested along with about 55 grams of heroin during vehicle checking at Chenani in Udhampur district this morning, the spokesman said.
He said the arrested accused were on way to Srinagar from Jammu in a car when they were intercepted by police, leading to the recovery of the narcotic substance.