Bengaluru police launch drive to bust peddlers, drugs worth Rs 90 lakh seized

Crime

The accused allegedly procured synthetic drugs from the dark web and sold it to school and college students.

TNM Staff

In its attempted crackdown against drug abuse, the police on Monday arrested 11 drug peddlers from multiple locations in East Bengaluru and have seized 1,100 LSD strips, 980 MDMA (ecstasy) pills, 450 gm of crystal meth, 25 gm of heroin, 500 ml of weed oil and 48 kg of marijuana. The police estimate the drugs to cost anywhere between Rs 90 lakh and Rs 1 crore.  The Halasuru Police on Monday arrested Keval M Lohith, a computer applications graduate, who allegedly participated in rave parties in Bengaluru and Goa and allegedly consumed drugs. Bengaluru Police Commissioner Kamal Pant said that Lohith allegedly began dealing drugs in order to make money.  “He used his contacts with African and Nigerian drug peddlers to purchase synthetic drugs and then he started to get synthetic drugs independently through the dark web by using bitcoins. Then, he used his associates as delivery boys to supply the drugs to party-going youths and college students,” Kamal Pant said.  The Halasuru police also arrested Mohammed Hifzulla alias MD, a college dropout, who had been working as an office boy at a product promotion company. The police said that Mohammed Hifzulla later started his own event organising company named Fusion Entertainment Company and allegedly began organizing events and parties where drugs were sold and consumed.  “In these parties, Hifzulla and his associates started supplying drugs to participants and also for students near schools and colleges to gain more money, to lead a luxurious life. He had contacts with African and Nigerian drug peddlers from whom he used to purchase cocaine, weed oil and other narcotic substances, apart from procuring through the dark web using bitcoins,” Kamla Pant said. Police said that Keval Lohith and Mohammed Hifzulla allegedly learned how to procure drugs from forums on the dark web, and allegedly began procuring them by using coded language in chats. The duo allegedly hired Aziz Niyaz, a Rapido captain and Guru Prasad, a Dunzo delivery person, and paid them to deliver drugs. They were given Rs 500 per delivery, investigation officials said. Meanwhile, the East Division police have arrested seven others in separate cases. The Ramamurthy Nagar Police arrested Mohammed Irfan, who was allegedly selling drugs to school and college students by procuring them from Mumbai, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. Crystal meth, heroin and marijuana were seized from his residence, officials said. The Banaswadi Police arrested Shaik Mohamed Yaseen, a native of Hyderabad, for allegedly selling marijuana. Nineteen kg of ganja was seized from his residence.  The DJ Halli police arrested courier delivery boy Dilip Kumar for allegedly selling marijuana. As much as 16 kg of ganja was seized from his residence, according to officials. The Ramamurthy Nagar Police, meanwhile, arrested AP resident Ram Babu and Mulabagal resident Mohan Raj for allegedly selling marijuana at the KR Puram Railway Station. The police said that they seized 10 kg marijuana from the duo.  “In Bharathi Nagar, KG Halli, Hennur Police Stations of East Division too, cases have been registered against many drug peddlers and abusers. So far, in East Division, 294 cases have been registered against 320 persons under NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act this year,” Kamal Pant added. 

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Bengaluru man cheated by logistics company, cops intervene to ensure delivery

Crime

A 26-year-old engineer from the city says Leo International Packers and Movers went incommunicado and did not deliver his bike for six weeks before he filed a police complaint.

Prajwal Bhat

On July 11, 26-year-old Saideep Cherukuri, an engineer based in Bengaluru, wanted to transport his bike to his hometown in Tadepalligudem in Andhra Pradesh. After making searches and enquiries on Logisticmart, an online search portal for movers, he received a call from someone claiming to be working with the reputed logistical company Agrawal Packers. He handed over his bike to a man on July 11 but over six weeks later at the start of September, Saideep had lost over Rs 16000 but was no closer to seeing his bike turn up at the destination.  "The man on the call introduced himself as Agrawal packers and movers but when he gave us an invoice for transporting the bike, the company was named Leo International packers and movers. A man named Anil Kumar took the bike and then there was no contact for a while," Saideep tells TNM. Saideep initially paid Rs 1000 for transporting after agreeing a price of Rs 4000. But two weeks after he handed over the bike, the man reached out to him asking him to pay Rs 12000 to deliver the bike. He says that even after paying this amount, there has been no trace of his bike over the past month.  Saideep approached Sadashivanagar Police Station in Bengaluru with a complaint on but he says he was told by police officials to wait longer for the company to deliver the bike. Sadashivanagar police inspector M Manjunath told TNM that the complaint was taken up last week on September 3 and the company - Leo International Packers and Movers -  was investigated. An FIR was registered in Sadashivanagar police station under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) accusing Anil Kumar and his colleague Jaideep.  "I repeatedly approached the police station for weeks to recover my bike but they said that it could be a delay due to the pandemic.. But when the movers began asking me for more money to deliver the product, I filed a police complaint and eventually, the bike was delivered on Saturday," says Saideep.  M Manjunath, the police inspector at Sadashivanagar police station who investigated the case, says that the police contacted Anil Kumar, the man who collected the bike, through the phone number shared by Saideep. "We brought him in for questioning after visiting his office near Goreguntepalya about withholding cargo meant for delivery. He was released after the cargo was delivered," says Manjunath.  Another Bengaluru resident Asif Khan, 28, also told TNM that personnel who claimed to be from Leo International Packers and Movers have not returned his belongings for over five months now. Asif, a resident of Whitefield in Bengaluru works in the entertainment industry, called up Leo International to move household items on March 20 this year from Bengaluru to Mumbai. Asif found Leo International through Justdial, a local search engine service.  According to Saideep and Asif, there are more people who are similarly waiting for their items to be delivered by this company. 

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Actor Ragini Dwivedi remanded to 5-day police custody

Crime

The CCB is yet to produce party planner Viren Khanna before the magistrate.

TNM Staff

A Bengaluru sessions court on Monday remanded actor Ragini Dwivedi to five-day police custody. The Central Crime Branch had submitted a remand application to the 1st Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate on Monday, asking the court to grant custody of Ragini Dwivedi for 10 days. At around 2 am, the Central Crime Branch produced Ragini Dwivedi before the magistrate via video conference. The prosecution claimed that the CCB had been able to interrogate her only for one of the three days she was in custody as she had complained of back pain. The CCB in its remand application said that Ragini had to be taken to various spots for inspection and that she needs to be questioned regarding her role in the drug case.  The CCB told the court that she had deleted messaging apps and chats on her mobile phones and that she was not cooperating with the investigation. “We wanted to find out dates, places where the parties were held. Who sold the drugs and who consumed them. We also told the court that we needed time to question her on her financials,” the CCB source added.  CCB sources said that Ragini’s counsel told the court that she had been imprisoned because she’s a celebrity and vested interests were allegedly trying to defame her. Ragini’s counsel argued that she had attended the parties but never consumed drugs or procured them. Ragini’s counsel informed the court that she was apprehended based on the allegations by Ravi Shankar. While the CCB had requested that she be remanded to its custody for 10 days, the court granted only five-day custody.  Meanwhile, Ragaini’s lawyers withdrew the anticipatory bail application on Monday and filed a fresh plea for conditional bail. The plea is yet to be heard.  Ragini Dwivedi was arrested on Friday by the Central Crime Branch. The CCB alleged that the actor attended high-end parties and allegedly consumed drugs in those parties. The CCB has also arrested Viren Khanna, a high profile party planner, Rahul Tonse and Senegalese national Loum Pepper Samba, who allegedly had links to the drug trade. Meanwhile, the police said that Ragini’s friend Ravi Shankar, the clerk at the RTO office in Jayanagar, and another accused Rahul Shetty, the real estate businessman and architect, will not be turned into witnesses, but would also be produced before the court as accused.  The CCB is yet to produce these accused before the magistrate.  The CCB on Monday also arrested a man named Niyaz, for allegedly supplying drugs to these parties. Niyaz, who is originally from Kerala, had settled in Bengaluru five years ago. “We will give more details after questioning him,” the CCB source added.   

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Once again, U.S. at pandemic crossroads

A brief opportunity to bring down the caseload before cold weather sets in may be squandered.

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Bengaluru drug case: Crime Branch to seek extension of Ragini Dwivedi’s custody

Crime

The police have detained Prashanth Ranka, another accused in the case.

TNM Staff

The Central Crime Branch (CCB), on Monday, said it is planning to seek the extension of actor Ragini Dwivedi’s custody in the Bengaluru drug case, stating that she has not cooperated with the investigation so far. Ragini has been lodged at the state-run women’s home in National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) and is being questioned by four women officers.  CCB sources said that Ragini, upon advice from her attorney, has remained tightlipped. She had applied for anticipatory bail on Friday evening, and the hearing is slated for Monday.  Meanwhile, the Bengaluru police detained Prashanth Ranka, one of the accused in the Bengaluru drug case, on Sunday evening. The CCB officers said that he will be arrested soon after they procure a warrant. According to CCB sources, Prashanth Ranka allegedly procured drugs and supplied it to the private parties that were organised at various locations in Bengaluru and the city’s outskirts.  The police have so far arrested four of the 12 accused in the case, including actor Ragini Dwivedi, Viren Khanna, the party planner, Rahul Tonse and Senagalese national Loum Pepper Samba. CCB sources maintained that Loum Pepper has not answered any of their questions, claiming that he does not know English.  Another accused, Vaibhav Jain, is currently in home quarantine and the CCB officials are surveilling his movements. “He will be detained and questioned once his quarantine period ends,” the CCB source added.  The CCB is still on the lookout of Aditya Alva, brother-in-law of Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi. CCB sources said that Aditya Alva is believed to be in Mumbai but his residence in the city is locked.  Ragini Dwivedi was arrested on Friday after the CCB questioned one of her friends Ravi Shankar, a clerk at the regional transport office in Jayanagar. Meanwhile, the CCB has also summoned Pruthvi Shetty for questioning on Monday. Pruthvi is a resident of Mangaluru and the police believe she was supplying drugs to the celebrities.  Read: Actor Vivek Oberoi’s brother-in-law among 12 named in Bengaluru drug case  

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Bengaluru has 14,520 active containment zones, most in RR Nagara

Coronavirus

Bengaluru reported 2,824 COVID-19 cases on Sunday.

TNM Staff

Bengaluru has 14,520 active containment zones, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike’s bulletin showed. The BBMP said that the city has seen 17,282 containment zones so far, of which 2,762 have returned to normal.  In terms of active containment zones, the most were seen in RR Nagara, where there are 3,155 containment zones. This is followed by Bommanahalli at 2,893, Mahadevapura at 2,410, Yelahanka at 1,684, Bengaluru West at 1,525, Bengaluru South at 1,192, Dasarahalli at 1,048 and Bengaluru East at 613. Bengaluru reported 2,824 COVID-19 cases on Sunday, with 4,540 recoveries and 38 deaths.  Karnataka, on Sunday, registered 9,319 fresh COVID-19 cases and 95 related deaths, pushing the total infections to 3.98 lakh, the health department said. The total number of infections comprise 2.92 lakh discharges, whereas there were 99,266 active cases in the state including 775 in the ICU, the department said in a statement. Mysuru  the sewascond biggest contributor after Bengaluru Urban, with 686 fresh cases and five deaths on Sunday. According to the health bulletin, 427 COVID-19 cases were reported in Belagavi, 396 in Ballari, 326 in Dakshina Kannada, 324 in Hassan, 329 in Shivamogga, 311 in Dharwad, followed by others. A majority of those who died of the deadly virus were above 50 years of age. Most of the deceased had Severe Acute Respiratory Illness, or the Influenza-Like Illness. The health department said as on Sunday 4.94 lakh people were home quarantined whereas in the past 14 days, 7.86 lakh primary contacts and 10.90 lakh secondary contacts have been traced. As many as 72,684 tests were done on Sunday, taking the total number of tests so far to 33.48 lakh, the department added. With PTI inputs

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Karnataka BJP dissociates itself from actor Ragini Dwivedi held in drugs case

Politics

The actor had campaigned for the BJP in the 2019 Karnataka bye-polls.

IANS

Karnataka's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday attempted to dissociate itself from Ragini Dwivedi, a Sandalwood actor arrested in the drugs scandal. "We disown Ragini Dwivedi," said BJP spokesperson Ganesh Karnik, saying that she was one of the hundreds of celebrities who campaigned for the BJP on her own volition. "Hundreds of celebrities from different walks of life campaigned for the BJP voluntarily during the 2019 bye-elections. The Kannada actress may have been one among them," he said. According to Karnik, Ragini is neither a member of the BJP nor had the party assigned her any election duty. However, in the run-up to the 2019 by-elections, she was the star campaigner for BJP MLA Narayana Gowda  "Ragini Dwivedi is not a member of the BJP. The BJP has not assigned her the responsibility of electioneering. She may have been involved in the campaign on her own," he said. The BJP is neither accountable nor answerable for her deeds in her personal capacity or professional life, he added. "We have nothing to do with it and we maintain distance from it," he said. Karnik stressed that the BJP is totally against any sort of anti-social activity, done by anyone. State BJP media joint convenor BN Raghavendra and convenor AH Anand endorsed Karnik's statement. In July, Ragini had rubbed shoulders with Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa at a programme aimed at fighting coronavirus. She took part in a short rally with Yediyurappa outside the Vidhana Soudha along with several other ministers and senior officials such as former cricketer Anil Kumble, Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya, Revenue Minister R Ashok and others. Wearing blue sportswear, she stood right behind the Chief Minister on the stage. Ragini also shared the stage with politicians from different parties when she was part of a scheme launching packaged drinking water at Rs 9.90 per litre on July 31. She has also campaigned for plasma donation to treat COVID-19 patients.  The actress was arrested by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) sleuths on Friday for her alleged links with the drugs scandal that has presently shaken the Kannada film industry. Earlier on Friday, seven CCB sleuths, including a woman police inspector, raided her flat.  The CCB also filed a FIR against Ragini in the Cottonpet police station in the city under the Narcotic Drug and Psychotropic Services (NDPS) Act. Ragini debuted in the film industry in 2009 with Veera Madakari and gained fame for stellar roles in movies such as Kempe Gowda, Ragini IPS, Bangari and Shiva.  

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