Shivam Bakshi
Jammu, Sep 10 (NVI): A drug trafficking accused who allegedly fled from the custody of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Jammu has been apprehended in Jalandhar following a three-day search operation, officials said on Thursday.
Aqib Bashir was traced and arrested during a coordinated operation involving the NCB, Jammu and Kashmir Police and Punjab Police, they said.
According to officials, Bashir fled Jammu and travelled towards Jalandhar via Pathankot. Before leaving the city, he allegedly hid in a forested area near Narwal Fruit Mandi to evade the security agencies.
He subsequently changed his appearance by shaving his beard and changing his clothes and used contacts in Jalandhar to seek shelter, officials said.
A joint team of the NCB Jammu, NCB Amritsar, NCB Chandigarh and Punjab Police eventually tracked him down when he was allegedly preparing to move towards Delhi or another state.
The accused’s movements were tracked through intelligence inputs and coordinated efforts by the agencies during the three-day operation, officials said.
The agencies are now probing the circumstances surrounding his escape and are likely to question him about people who may have assisted him in arranging transport, shelter and other logistical support after he fled.
Investigators are also examining whether his movement was facilitated by a wider drug-trafficking network operating across Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
Officials said the investigation would seek to establish the role of any facilitators, financiers or other members of the alleged network.
There is no official confirmation so far of any involvement of a terror module in helping the accused evade arrest, and any such link would have to be established through investigation and evidence.
The arrest is expected to help the agencies further investigate the alleged drug-trafficking network and identify others involved in the case.—(NVI)
