NEW DELHI: Delhi Police's Special Cell has arrested the wanted kingpin of a drug syndicate and recovered Tramadol capsules and codeine-based cough syrup bottles valued at around Rs 8 crore, an official said on Tuesday.
The arrested kingpin has been identified as Yusuf Azam (43), a resident of Lucknow. Police had earlier nabbed six members of his syndicate, which he was operating through his pharmaceutical company, AK Pharma, the official added.
In October 2023, police apprehended three men Md Faizan Beg, Md Zubair, and Rekha linked to the syndicate. Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of three more members and seizures of incriminating evidence. However, the alleged mastermind, Yusuf, remained elusive.
"Faizan and Zubair confessed to sourcing psychotropic medications from Rahul and Tushar, both of whom were subsequently detained. Through their interrogation and examination of their electronic and financial records, Yusuf Azam emerged as the primary orchestrator, " said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Manoj C.
Numerous raids were conducted to track down Yusuf, who continuously changed locations to evade arrest. "Manual and technological efforts eventually pinpointed his whereabouts in Transport Nagar, Lucknow, " said the DCP.
On April 8, after extensive intelligence gathering, a raid successfully led to Yusuf's arrest at his hideout.
"He was taken into custody for questioning, which revealed substantial evidence, including 648, 942 capsules/tablets of Tramadol, 44, 834 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup, incriminating documents, and three mobile phones, " said the DCP.
On interrogation, Yusuf confessed to operating in the illicit trade for 15 years, using his pharmaceutical company, AK Pharma, as a front.
"Additionally, he acquired licences from other firms to procure psychotropic medications in large quantities, selling them in the grey market for significant profits without proper documentation, " said the DCP.