The Assam Police on Monday said that for the first time, it will freeze the assets of the recently arrested drug lord, Baba Hazarika in Karbi Anglong district.
DGP Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta in a tweet said, “In a first, probably in the country, we moved competent authority to freeze the illegally acquired properties by druglord Baba Hazarika of Karbi Anglong. The competent authority concurred. This was done after financial investigation, very ably carried out by Karbi Angling police.”
“The precedence is set; a new frontier is opened in our fight against the menace of drugs. We shall overcome,” he tweeted.
It may be mentioned that on January 13, the Karbi Anglong police arrested Baba Hazarika from his residence who is alleged of being one of the kingpins of the inter-state drug racket.
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Hazarika is a resident of the Gharialdubi locality under Khatkhati Police Station.
Police following his arrest seized a huge quantity of drugs from a tipper truck and some wildlife parts inside his residence. The driver of the truck was also arrested in this connection.
The seized items include 795 grams of fine quality heroin worth over Rs 5 Crore in the market, several wildlife parts and three vehicles including the tipper truck.
According to police, Hazarika operated his illegal trade along the Assam-Nagaland border and controlled a network of drug smuggling from procurement to transport and distribution at various levels.
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He amassed a huge fortune in the past couple of years and was under police observation for a long time.
Speaking to the media, Pusparaj Singh, Superintendent of Police, Karbi Anglong said, “We received information about Baba Hazarika and he was kept under surveillance by a team of Karbi Anglong police for the last three months. His house was being monitored on a daily basis and his movements were tracked.”
“Yesterday, after receiving specific information about the shipment of a huge consignment of drugs from Manipur to Hazarika, we place source near his house and about 4:30 AM in the morning, a tipper truck entered his compound.
“Immediately, our police team arrived and cordoned the entire campus of Hazarika. After a thorough search of the vehicle, 60 soapboxes containing 795 grams of heroin were recovered concealed in a secret chamber inside the fuel tank of the vehicle,” Singh added.
The SP further said the residence was also searched thoroughly and some wildlife parts including a pair of the elephant ankle bones, three deer antlers along with the skull and tortoiseshell were recovered.