Bus search in Jatrabari: Heroin worth Tk 10 lakh found in 65-year-old woman’s clothes
Photo: Collected
The Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) has arrested a 65-year-old woman with 100 grams of heroin in the capital’s Jatrabari. The estimated market value of the recovered heroin is Tk 10 lakh.
The arrested woman is Masuma Khatun. She was arrested on Tuesday night after a search of a ‘Narail Express’ bus in the Dholaipar roundabout area.
Md Mehedi Hasan, deputy director of the DNC’s Dhaka divisional intelligence office, gave this information on Wednesday morning.
He said they learnt, on the basis of a tip-off, that a woman was coming with heroin on a Dhaka-bound ‘Narail Express’ bus from Jashore. Later, a DNC team led by Assistant Director Mostak Ahmed took position in the Dholaipar roundabout area of Jatrabari.
The bus was stopped and searched at around 7:20pm. At that time, Masuma Khatun, who was sitting in a middle seat of the bus, was detained. At one stage of questioning, the DNC came to know that she had heroin with her. With the help of the team’s female members, a polybag wrapped in scotch tape was recovered from inside the clothes she was wearing. The DNC said the polybag contained 100 grams of heroin.
In primary interrogation, Masuma Khatun claimed she was bringing the heroin consignment from Jashore to Dhaka. According to her, her daughter Tahmina pressured her to transport the drugs and she was coming to Dhaka with the heroin on her daughter’s instructions. She said during interrogation that she had carried heroin twice more in the same way before.
The DNC said information on Tahmina’s involvement in the drug trade in the Jatrabari area has been found in the preliminary inquiry. However, the matter is being investigated further and the information and data are being verified. The DNC’s intelligence activities and drives are continuing to locate Tahmina and bring her to book.
DNC officials said it is being looked into seriously whether elderly women or family members are being used to transport drugs. An investigation is under way to identify whether such a tactic is a planned method of any organised drug ring, where the source and destination of the drugs are, and who are involved with it. The DNC said a case has been filed against Masuma Khatun under the Narcotics Control Act over the incident.
The DNC further said that alongside the investigation of the case, the seized evidence, mobile phone data, the arrested woman’s statement and other intelligence information are being verified. On the basis of this information, efforts are under way to identify the source of the drugs, the suppliers, and the traders and associates concerned and bring them to book.
