Nigerian man, a key member of drug smuggling cartel, held in Goa after chase by DRI officers

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officers arrested a Nigerian national, a key member of a drug smuggling cartel, after a 20-minute dramatic chase in the forests of Anjuna in Goa, an official said on Thursday.

The operation was conducted on February 19, following which the agency also recovered 39 grams of cocaine and unaccounted cash of nearly Rs 6 lakh from his rented accommodation in the coastal state, he said.

During the probe, it also came to light that the accused had been staying in India illegally for the past couple of years and managed the affairs of this international drug syndicate from Goa, he said. Officers from the DRI's Mumbai and Goa zonal teams conducted the operation based on specific inputs. It was a follow-up of the agency's action at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai on January 10, in which more than 4 kg cocaine was recovered from a Thai woman, he said. The arrested Thai woman was trying to smuggle the contraband into India for the drug syndicate, the official said. ''During an in-depth analysis and detailed financial and travel investigation, the Nigerian national, located in Goa, was identified as a key player of this syndicate who was operating and managing affairs of this international syndicate from Goa,'' a statement released by the DRI said. After continuous surveillance, the DRI finally tracked him down to a very secluded area around Anjuna in North Goa, it added.

''However, the accused got suspicious and sprinted into the dense forest nearby in a bid to flee. Unfamiliar with the forest trails, the DRI officers divided themselves into separate teams and began to chase him down,'' the statement said.

While one team of the DRI continued the chase him, another one systematically blocked the possible exit points. The accused was apprehended after a dramatic chase that lasted for around 20 minutes, it added.

Following a search of his rented residential premises, it was found that he possessed 39 grams of cocaine, laboratory equipment and unaccounted cash worth Rs 5.79 lakh. It also came to light that he was using the laboratory equipment to adulterate cocaine by mixing it with baking powder, while the cash was proceeds of the sale of drugs that he had earlier sold. During his interrogation, the accused admitted his role in the drug trafficking activities in India, the DRI said in its statement, adding that he also admitted being a supplier of narcotic substances to the local drug peddlers and their clients.

It was also found that he had been arrested twice before in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act cases and was staying in India without any legal documents or permit, the DRI said. Following his arrest in Goa, he was brought to Mumbai on a transit remand and produced before a court, which remanded him in judicial custody, it said, adding that a probe was underway.