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Ex-Tour Operator Jailed 10 Years for Drug Ring
11 Oct
Summary
- Former tour operator sentenced to 10 years for drug trafficking.
- Arrested with parcels containing narcotics from UK and France.
- Alleged involvement in international postal drug syndicate.
Pankaj Sharma, a 39-year-old former tour and travel business owner from Himachal Pradesh, was sentenced to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 1 lakh for possessing a commercial quantity of MDMA. His conviction stems from his arrest in July 2023 by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Solan.
Sharma was apprehended on July 5, 2023, while collecting two postal parcels from the UK and France. These parcels were addressed to fictitious doctors, and the investigation suggested they contained narcotics. The NCB's inquiry uncovered alleged plans for hydroponic cannabis cultivation and methamphetamine production.
Further investigations suggested Sharma's involvement in an international postal drug trafficking syndicate with links to several European countries. He was also investigated for suspected connections with foreign nationals, including a Swedish national, Aleks Ansgar Toolanen, although insufficient evidence led to Toolanen's prosecution.
Despite the defense's claims of procedural lapses and the use of dummy parcels, the court found Sharma guilty under Section 22(c) of the NDPS Act. He has already served approximately three years of his sentence and has about seven years remaining.
