Three drug peddlers held with 11g MDMA worth Rs.4.65 lakh

LatestCrimeHyderabad
By HNH Web Desk
drug peddlers

Hyderabad: Three drug peddlers were arrested by the Hyderabad Narcotics Enforcement Wing during a joint operation with Masab Tank police, leading to the seizure of 11 grams of MDMA.

Police identified the accused as Upputuri Kartheek, Chirumamilla Balaji and Tandra Deepak. During the operation, officers recovered three mobile phones, one two-wheeler and one four-wheeler. Together, the seized property was valued at Rs.4.65 lakh.

Kartheek, also known as Alex, was 37 years old and hailed from the Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh. Meanwhile, Balaji, aged 32, and Deepak, aged 29, resided in Jeedimetla under the Medchal Malkajgiri district. Police said all three functioned as drug peddlers supplying MDMA to local consumers.

Investigators said Kartheek faced financial stress and therefore entered the MDMA trade. He learnt procurement methods from his brother-in-law, Balaji, who had a criminal background. Subsequently, Kartheek travelled to Bengaluru, sourced MDMA from suppliers, and repacked it into one-gram sachets for sale in Hyderabad.

Drug peddlers built a network to sustain lavish lifestyles

Balaji had earlier consumed MDMA and had faced a case under the NDPS Act for MDMA peddling. However, after his release from jail, he returned to selling drugs to sustain a lavish lifestyle. He purchased MDMA from Kartheek at Rs.4,000 per gram and sold it at higher prices.

Later, Balaji introduced Tandra Deepak, a regular MDMA consumer, into the distribution chain. As a result, Deepak began reselling the drug to known buyers. He bought one gram of MDMA for Rs.5,000 and sold it at a profit.

Deepak was a B.Tech (Civil) student and also worked in a private company. Over time, addiction pushed him from personal consumption into peddling. Consequently, he operated as a sub-peddler under Balaji and regularly sourced MDMA for resale.

Gaikwad Vaibhav Raghunath, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Task Force and H-NEW, said drug addiction among youth was rising steadily. He warned that such abuse damaged families and weakened society.

Therefore, H-NEW urged the public to stay away from substance abuse and advised parents to monitor their children’s activities closely to prevent drug exposure.

You might also like More from author