LAHORE: The Organised Crime Unit (OCU) of police claimed to have busted a network of international drug traffickers, arresting three suspects having foreign nationalities, besides their “local partners”, and recovered 4.5kg cocaine worth Rs150 million and other drugs from them.

The police say the suspects were supplying cocaine in Lahore and other parts of Punjab, while a major portion of the drug was being trafficked to Iran through the network’s accomplices in Balochistan.

Lahore OCU DIG Imran Kishwar confirmed to Dawn the busting of the network, saying his teams have seized cocaine worth Rs150m from the arrested suspects, who were international drug dealers.

He said a raid was conducted by OCU North team, arresting suspects Irfan alias Amir Cheema alias Billa (a Spanish national), Qamar Virk (an Italian national) and Imad Butt alias Speedy (a UK national).

Cocaine worth Rs150m seized

He said the suspects also supplied cocaine, ecstasy pills and heroin to drug dealers in Iran.

The DIG said Cheema was wanted in four cases filed by the Anti-Narcotics Force and had served a six-year term in a Spanish jail. He said the huge quantity of the drug was recovered in a raid on the house of stage actress Nigar Chaudhry, wife of Imad Butt.

The team has also arrested the networks “local distributors” Waqas, Faheem Jutt and Rizwan, he said.

The OCU police also seized 25,000 ecstasy pills and 7kg heroin from the ir hideouts, and making efforts to recover more drugs, police sources said.

Mr Kishwar said the suspects revealed supply of a huge quality of cocaine to elite circles in the province, which was a matter of grave concern.

He said cocaine is sold to Iranian drug dealers at very high prices as the neighbouring country has strict enforcement of stringent laws against possession, and dealing in narcotics, particularly cocaine.

He said the OCU has gathered some credible information that could lead to more criminals

linked to the drug-supply network.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2024