Drug Smuggler Aqib Bashir Re-Arrested in Jalandhar After Three-Day Manhunt
Aqib Bashir, who escaped NCB custody in Jammu, was re-arrested in Jalandhar after a three-day multi-state manhunt involving the NCB, J&K Police and Punjab Police.
A drug trafficker who fled from the custody of the Narcotics Control Bureau in Jammu has been re-arrested in Jalandhar, Punjab, following a three-day manhunt that spanned two states.
Aqib Bashir tried to evade capture by shaving off his beard and changing his clothes, and by keeping to secluded locations. His efforts ultimately failed when a joint operation by the NCB, the Jammu and Kashmir Police and the Punjab Police tracked him down.
After escaping in Jammu, Bashir initially remained in the city while investigators recovered important clues from a forested area near Narwal's Fruit Mandi. He then moved towards Punjab through Pathankot, travelling largely under the cover of darkness, and took shelter in Jalandhar with the help of his contacts.
Sustained intelligence-sharing and coordinated ground action between the police forces of the two states helped locate him despite his altered appearance. Officials said he was allegedly preparing to flee to Delhi or another state when he was caught.
Bashir had been arrested on September 3 after a consignment of heroin was recovered from him at Samba New Bus Stand. He is regarded as a key link in a larger narcotics network.
His re-arrest forms part of a month-long NCB crackdown in which 6.92 kg of heroin was seized in four separate operations and six accused were arrested. The seized narcotics are estimated to be worth Rs 35-48 crore in the international market.