One of India’s most coordinated crackdowns on an international drug network has resulted in the arrest of at least fifty Nigerians.
They are thought to be connected to a vast hawala laundering and narcotics distribution network that operates in several of India’s largest cities.
The Delhi Police, working with the Telangana Police’s EAGLE squad, conducted the operation, according to a report published on Thursday by the Indian news agency NDTV.
It was reported that months of intelligence gathering culminated in days of simultaneous raids across Delhi, leading officers to dismantle key layers of a cartel moving methamphetamine and cocaine across India.
According to the report, investigations revealed that the cartel maintained an extensive customer base using encrypted communication and delivery methods modelled after food-delivery apps to execute drug “dead drops” and avoid face-to-face exchanges.
The network was very advanced. To avoid being discovered by law authorities, they employed app-based distribution patterns and multilayer communication channels, according to the paper.
Additionally, officials revealed that the syndicate’s distribution network was entwined with a sex-trade ring that supplied both logistics and cover for the movement of drugs. “Investigators have identified approximately 2,000 individuals who were supplied drugs through courier and dead-drop methods,” the report said.
Furthermore, the authorities uncovered that the sex trade was used as a cover for drug supply and distribution, extending the criminal reach of the cartel.”
