The Nagpur Rural police have taken custody of Pankaj Singh Thakur (33), a notorious gangster from Uttar Pradesh, who is the prime accused in the Kelvad mephedrone (MD) drug smuggling case. Thakur, a resident of Varanasi district, was initially arrested on June 2 by the Uttar Pradesh police for possessing crude bombs.
Link to Interstate Drug Racket
Following leads that connected Thakur to an interstate drug racket, the Nagpur Rural Police, under the supervision of Superintendent of Police Harssh A Poddar and Additional Superintendent of Police Anil Mhaske, obtained court permission and took his custody from Uttar Pradesh. The gangster has now been brought to Nagpur for detailed interrogation.
Previous Arrests in the Case
Earlier, the Local Crime Branch team had arrested three accused from Madhya Pradesh and seized 485 grams of MD powder worth Rs 24.25 lakh, along with a sports utility vehicle and mobile phones. The fourth accused, Ankur Raj Bahadur Yadav from Prayagraj, was later arrested from Seoni, Madhya Pradesh.
Investigators believe that Singh played a crucial role in supplying the narcotic consignment. Interrogation is ongoing to expose the entire drug network, which is suspected to have links across multiple states.
