Drug smugglers in Hyderabad are increasingly using private courier and parcel delivery services to move narcotics like MDMA and marijuana across State borders. The EAGLE task force has intensified checks after uncovering student involvement and courier staff complicity.
Hyderabad: Narcotic trafficking gangs are finding new ways to continue their illegal drug trade, and this time, they have turned to private courier and parcel delivery services to transport and smuggle contraband from various states into Hyderabad.
According to intelligence gathered by the Telangana State Anti-Drug Task Force ‘EAGLE’, smugglers are now using these courier networks to move synthetic drugs such as heroin, cocaine, MDMA, and high-grade marijuana like hydroponic and ‘OG’ weed across State borders.
“With the police intensifying checks on buses, private vehicles and highways, drug smugglers seem to have shifted to using small couriers, sending drugs in small quantities to avoid detection,” said an official of the EAGLE team.
The EAGLE Task Force recently busted a racket involving students of a private university in Hyderabad who were using couriers to receive marijuana from Delhi and Karnataka.
Investigations into drug cases have further revealed that traffickers send parcels under false or vague delivery addresses to avoid suspicion or being tracked.
As per sources, the sender often mentions only a locality name, leaving out building or house details. When delivery executives are unable to locate the address, they are instructed to call the given phone numbers, allowing the receiver to collect the parcel from a nearby location instead, which is seen as a safer move.
“Most of these suspicious parcels are reportedly originating from Goa, Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru,” police officials said.
Police also suspect the involvement of a few courier company employees who might be aiding the smuggling network, knowingly or otherwise.
Law enforcement authorities have now begun tightening surveillance on courier hubs across Telangana, as this new trend of drug smuggling through legitimate delivery channels poses a serious challenge to enforcement agencies.
