New Delhi: A fugitive wanted in a major narcotics case was brought back from Azerbaijan by the Special Cell of Delhi Police, who secured his extradition in coordination with the CBI, officials said on Wednesday.
The accused, Prabhdeep Singh, was wanted in a 2021 case involving the recovery of 358 kilograms of heroin and had been absconding since 2023, they said.
A three-member Special Cell team travelled to Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, and brought Prabhdeep back to India after completing the extradition formalities, said an official statement.
According to police, Prabhdeep allegedly handled the India operations of an international drug syndicate run by his cousin Navpreet Singh alias Nav, a foreign-based drug kingpin whose last known location was Turkey.
“Prabhdeep acted as a key conduit between Navpreet Singh and other members of the syndicate operating in India. He allegedly passed instructions from Navpreet to two arrested accused, Gurpreet Singh and Gurjot Singh, from whom 333 kilograms of heroin was recovered during an investigation,” it read.
Police said Prabhdeep also monitored the movement of narcotics consignments and remained in constant contact with other associates of the syndicate. He would be interrogated on the details of his role in the syndicate, and to gather more information regarding the international drug network, they said.
According to police, the case dates back to July 2021. The Special Cell received information about Rizwan Ahmed alias Rizwan Kashmiri, who was allegedly involved in drug trafficking across Delhi and several states, including Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.
“On July 5, 2021, acting on a tip-off, police intercepted Rizwan in the Ghitorni area of south Delhi when he was allegedly going to deliver a heroin consignment. One kilogram of heroin was recovered from his possession, following which he was arrested,” read a police statement.
During interrogation, Rizwan allegedly disclosed that he worked under the directions of an Afghan national identified as Isha Khan. He also revealed his links with Punjab residents Gurpreet Singh and Gurjot Singh, who were allegedly operating a drug network from Faridabad in Haryana. Subsequently, police raided their hideouts in Faridabad and arrested both accused.
“On their instance, police recovered 166 kilograms of heroin from a car and another 115 kilograms from a second car. Additionally, around 70 kilograms of heroin and psychotropic substances were recovered from their rented accommodation,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Praveen Kumar Tripathi said in the statement.
Further investigation led to the arrest of another Afghan national, Hazrat Ali, from Gurugram. Police recovered 2 kilograms of heroin and around 100 kilograms of chemicals allegedly used in the preparation of narcotic substances from his possession.
Investigators later found that Gurpreet Singh had come in contact with Navpreet Singh while both were lodged in Kapurthala jail in Punjab in connection with separate narcotics cases.
So far, 11 accused, including one Afghan national, have been arrested in the case. The trial against 10 accused is currently underway, police said.
