A team of Special Task Force of the Odisha Crime Branch on Saturday seized brown sugar worth Rs1.20 crore during a raid at Baramunda in Bhubaneswar and arrested two smugglers in this connection.
They have been identified as Kapildev Mujumdar and Rashmiranjan Bhola.
While Kapildev is a resident of West Bengal, Rashmiranjan belongs to Jankia in Khurda district. Police also seized fake photos and voter identity cards from their possession.
Police revealed that the smugglers used to give their identity as doctors, police and managers to avoid police arrest.
“We seized brown sugar weighing 1 kilogram 238gram and Rs 17,000 in cash from their possession. Besides, fake ID cards of being a doctor and general manager of Swastik Event management, two laptops and other articles were seized from the possession of Rashmiranjan Bhola. It was when they failed to produce documents in support of the possession of the contraband, they were arrested and subsequently produced in a court,” said DSP, STF, Sachidananda Rath.
Earlier a couple of months back, the STF had arrested three persons and seized brown sugar worth over Rs 1 crore from their possession in Khordha district.
Notably, the STF has launched a special drive against illegal narcotics trade in Odisha. Since 2020, the STF has seized more than 50 Kg of brown sugar/heroin and over 90 quintals of ganja /marijuna. The STF has also arrested more than 128 drugs dealers/peddlers in separate cases registered in different parts of the State so far during the special drive.