Pakistani boat was carrying 232 packets of heroin worth Rs 600 crore
After a day-long joint interrogation of eight crewmen caught with narcotics from the international waters, the Coast Guard authorities on Tuesday handed them over to the Gujarat police for further investigation and initiation of due legal processes.
After a day-long joint interrogation of eight crewmen caught with narcotics from the international waters, the Coast Guard authorities on Tuesday handed them over to the Gujarat police for further investigation and initiation of due legal processes.
The seized packets of heroin, a total of 232, were handed over to the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the boats, to the Customs authorities. Sources close to the development said the Coast Guard completed the formalities of handing over the men and the material to the three agencies in the evening. Since Coast Guard does not have the powers to investigate, these agencies would carry forward the investigations.
The joint interrogation of the eight crewmen carrying the heroin was conducted at Porbandar port. Officials from Indian Navy, Indian Coast Guard, NCB and other intelligence agencies had joined the interrogation to find leads on glaring questions like who the consignment was for and whether there was any Indian connection. The agencies also tried to ascertain who the detained crewmen were working for and if they were a part of a drug cartel or terrorist group.
On Monday, the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard in a joint operation had intercepted a Pakistani boat off the Gujarat coast, carrying 232 packets of heroin worth Rs600 crore in the international market and detained eight suspected Pakistani nationals onboard.Well-planned OpNavy, Coast Guard launched joint operation getting intelligence input on April 18Navy's 'Kondul' and Coast Guard's 'Sangram' ships supported entire operationMultiple units of Navy and Coast Guard involvedExtensive aerial searches conducted by Navy, Coast Guard aircraftDorniers, IL38 and P8Is carried out sortiesSeizures & arrests232 packets of narcotics worth Rs600 cr in global marketTwo boats, one of them used for transshipmentEight suspected Pakistani nationals on boardSatellite communications phonesGlobal Positioning SystemsSome other phones and SIM cardsRigorous interrogationThe joint interrogation was conducted by the Navy, Coast Guard, Narcotics Control Bureau, Central Intelligence Bureau, Customs, State Intelligence and SOG.