Bengaluru: CCB arrests Nigerian national for running drug factory at home

Official sources said that the accused used to prepare the synthetic drug in a pressure cooker using raw materials at his home in Avalahalli.

Bengaluru:Anti-narcotics squad of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on Friday arrested a foreign national for allegedly making synthetic drugs in a pressure cooker and selling them in the country and abroad here, police said. The accused has been identified as Benjamin, a native of Nigeria.

According to official sources, MDMA worth Rs 10 crore, chemicals used for its manufacture, and other equipment including chemical acid were seized. The official sources said that the accused used to prepare the synthetic drug in a pressure cooker using raw materials at his home in Avalahalli.

"Later, he used to sell them to customers and drug suppliers across the world. Initially, he was arrested for selling 100 grams of MDMA at the Ramamurthy Nagar police station area. However, it the investigation, it was revealed that he was running a small drug factory in his house in Avalahalli," they added.

Police said that the merchant visa of the accused, who came to India, expired in 2022. "However, in 2021, he rented a house and lived in the city to start a textile business. The accused was also earlier arrested in Hyderabad," they added..

Currently, 5 kg MDMA worth Rs 10 crore, raw materials for making drugs, a pressure cooker, stove, gas cylinder, one mobile phone, two wheeler vehicles have been seized from the accused. A case has been registered against the detainee under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS) Act, 1985 and Foreigners Act at the Ramamurthy Nagar police station. The court has remanded the accused to a police custody till November 20, said City Police Commissioner B Dayanand.