The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday said they have attached two properties of a key accused in a case related to the smuggling of 102 kg of heroin from Afghanistan via the Attari border.
The properties belong to Razi Haider Zaidi, a notorious heroin smuggler from Okhla Vihar, New Delhi.
The NIA said the immovable properties was attached under section 68(F) of the NDPS Act include a residential plot measuring 121.35 sq.metres in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, which the accused had purchased in his name for Rs 4 lakhs.
The second property is a residential two-stroreyed building in Okhla Vihar, purchased for Rs 24.5 lakhs in the name of Zaidi’s wife.
According to the NIA, Zaidi purchased the two properties from the sale proceeds of heroin.
He was arrested by the NIA on August 24, 2022 and a charge sheet against him, along with three other co-accused persons, was filed on December 16 under various sections of the NDPS Act.
The drug consignment of a total of 102.784 kg heroin was seized by Indian Customs department on April 24 and 26, 2022.
The narcotics, which had reached Attari on April 22 were found concealed in a consignment of licorice roots.
NIA investigations revealed that Zaidi was the receiver of the consignment.
The probe further revealed that on the directions of Zaidi’s Dubai-based absconding co-accused Shahid Ahmed, the heroin consignment was sent Nazir Ahmed Qani, a smuggler from Mazar-e-Sharif in Afghanistan.
It was supposed to be delivered to Zaidi who had handed over Rs 11 lakhs in cash to another accused as advance payment of the said consignment.
Further investigations revealed that Shahid Ahmed had directed Zaidi to collect and deliver heroin consignments from various parts in India from time to time who had delivered them to different associates.
Zaidi had also collected cash around Rs 2.5 crore from various states in India, as sale proceeds of heroin, the NIA said.
From this, he had taken his share and had channelised some of the drug proceeds into Shahid Ahmed’s bank account.
He handed over the rest as cash to Shahid’s brother Azeem Ahmed and other associates.
In February 2022, Zaidi Shahid Ahmed and Qani had smuggled heroin concealed in licorice roots imported from Afghanistan.
The NCB had recovered 50 kg heroin from Zaidi’s possession, following which a charge sheet was filed against him.
“It has come on record that accused Zaidi is a notorious drug smuggler and supplier and in February 2022, he had imported 640 cans of chemicals through Iran for processing heroin at his rented godown in Muzaffarnagar, with the assistance of Afghan nationals sent by the Afghan based accused Shahid Ahmed.
“The said narcotics were later seized by NCB, New Delhi in a joint operation with ATS, Gujarat,” the NIA said.
Investigations have also unearthed that in November 2021, on the instructions of Shahid Ahmed, Zaidi and two of his associates namely Avtar Singh and Mohd. Imran had gone to Ahmedabad twice for collection of narcotics, which they brought to Delhi and supplied to their assaociates.
Apart from the above mentioned instances of drugs smuggling in which accused Zaidi was arrested by different law enforcement agencies, he had successfully smuggled heroin and collected money derived from its sales from various places of Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat.
Initially, the case was investigated by Indian Customs, Amritsar and later, under directions of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, NIA took over the prove.
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