Patiala: Punjab Police on Monday arrested an Arjuna awardee and his four associates for their alleged involvement in a synthetic drug racket from a dhaba on GT Road near Haryana`s Murthal, about 50 km from New Delhi, and seized narcotics worth about Rs 20 crore.
Police claimed that Arjuna awardee Jagdish Singh alias Bhola, also a deputy superintendent of Punjab Police who had been dismissed from service, was the kingpin of Rs 700 crore synthetic drug racket and used to supply the narcotics to the US and some European countries.
Acting on a tip-off, a police team arrested Bhola and his four associates -- Sarabjit Singh alias Saba, Harpreet Singh alias Happy, Baljinder Singh and Ravinder Singh -- from the dhaba, Patiala SSP H S Mann said, adding Bhola and his aides had been on the run since the racket was unearthed and police raided his Mohali residence in March this year.
Police seized two cars from the accused and recovered 10 kg precursor chemical worth Rs 10 crore in the international market, 1.5 kg drug worth Rs 7.5 crore, 600 gms of another precursor chemical worth Rs 60 lakh, the SSP said.
Cases have been registered against Bhola and his aides and they are being interrogated, he added.
Bhola was a former decorated wrestler who had won the Arjuna Award, Bharat Kesri and Rustam-i-Hind titles and was recruited in the police as a sportsman.
He had been dismissed by Punjab Police after his involvement in the drug trade came to light.
