Security force in Manipur arrested three persons with contraband brown sugar worth over Rs 1.73 crore in the international market in three separate incidents.
An official source from the IGAR(South), Imphal said that Tengnoupal battalion of Assam Rifles detained three drivers after brown sugar was found carried in their vehicles on Saturday.
Two of the drivers were apprehended at Tengnoupal check post along the NH-102 (Imphal-Moreh route) while the other one was arrested at the Khudengthabi check post along the same highway.
The report said that troops of Assam Rifles on duty at the Tengnoupal vehicle check post detected brown sugar packed in 23 soap cases during a check on an Eeco van travelling towards Imphal on August 22, around 9.30 am. The contraband item was found during a thorough checking of the vehicle. The brown sugar would be worth around Rs 48 lakh in the international market, the report added. The item was found hidden in the bonnet of the vehicle. The vehicle was also carrying 152 packets of medicines illegally smuggled from Myanmar side, the report further added.
Letkhohao Haokip (35) of S Molcham village of Churachandpur district who was the driver of the vehicle was detained by the troops, it said.
At the same post, another 18 packets of brown sugar which would worth around Rs 45.2 lakh in the international market was recovered during checking of another vehicle (Alto car on Saturday, around 2 pm, the Assam Rifles source said. The item was also found hidden inside the bonnet of the vehicle. The driver identified as Lamkam Baite (49) of Tuibuong of Churachandpur district was detained. The two vehicles were transporting the contraband items to Churachandpur, the Assam Rifles alleged.
The arrested individuals along with the recovered items have been handed over to the Tengnopal police station of Tengnoupal district late yesterday evening for further investigations, the Assam Rifles source said.
In yet another incident, troops of the same Tengnoupal Battalion of Assam Rifles on duty at Khudengthabi check post along the NH-102 recovered 34 more packets of brown sugar from a Maruti Eeco van on Saturday, around 9 am. The recovered item would worth around Rs 80 lakh in the international market, the Assam Rifles source said.
The driver of the vehicle identified as Nurul Hasan (30) of Lilong Chingkham Makha in Thoubal district was detained, the Assam Rifles added.
The detained individual and the recovered items have been handed over to Moreh police station of Tengnoupal district for further investigation, the source further added.
NNN
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