Drug courier wanted in Rs 56L cannabis seizure case nabbed

A cab driver, who moonlighted as a drug courier and was wanted in a high-profile narcotics case in Rajasthan, was arrested from Uttam Nagar here, the police said on Saturday.

The accused, identified as Sanjeev Kumar Shah (32), was carrying a reward of Rs 10,000 on his arrest in connection with a major drug seizure in Rajasthan’s Sawai Madhopur district. The case, registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, involved the confiscation of 567 kg of cannabis valued at over Rs 56 lakh in July 2024.

Shah, who had been on the run since the seizure, was allegedly piloting a mini-truck carrying the contraband during a highway operation near Rawanjana Dungar. While five accomplices were caught on the spot, Shah managed to escape in an escort vehicle.

To avoid arrest, he frequently changed locations and worked as a cab driver in Delhi-NCR to stay under the radar. Acting on a tip-off, the police apprehended Shah near the Uttam Nagar Metro station on June 18.

During interrogation, Shah revealed that he was born in Begusarai, Bihar, and later moved to Delhi with his father, who worked in a gas agency.

He studied up to Class XI in Janakpuri and then worked in a jeans design factory before switching to driving Gramin Sewa vehicles.

Interrogation revealed his past involvement in another NDPS case in Haryana’s Nuh district in 2022, linked to a 313-kg cannabis seizure.

Delhi