An assignment to peddle 100 grams of cocaine in the city led to the arrest of a ‘most-wanted’ Nigerian drug peddler, Chukwu Ogbonna David alias Tony, along with his network of distributors and customers, in Hyderabad.
Verified sources told The Hindu that the transactions originated in the first week of January. Two aides of the kingpin from Mumbai, Imran Babu Shaik and Noor Mohammed Khan, were first arrested from outside a mall at Punjagutta, where they had been waiting to deliver a package.
When interrogated, they spilled the beans, and police came to know of the registered number of Tony’s Toyota in Mumbai, from where Hyderabad police had picked him up and brought here.
When Tony was grilled, he gave details of the cocaine deal in the last fortnight, and that exposed nearly two dozen people, including the city’s industrialists, businessmen and contractors.
Punjagutta police produced 10 of the total accused before a court, in addition to Shaik and Khan, who were remanded earlier. At least 10 other accused are still at large, police said.
Tony came to Mumbai in 2013 for a better livelihood and through his community there, he ventured into export of wigs and garments. With the help of another Nigerian called ‘Star Boy’, Tony started smuggling drugs in Mumbai, Goa and other cities.
He was booked for violations under The Foreigners Act and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. All the arrested so far have also been booked under various provisions of the Act and remanded to judicial custody.
