PANJIM: The State police busted an organised international drugs network in the Russian-dominated tourism belt of Pernem in what the raiding team claims to be a major crackdown this year.
Four Russian tourists were caught in separate raids conducted by a team of North Goa District police. The raids exposed the involvement of the Russians in growing cannabis at their rented premises and trading in drugs, while their interrogation solved a three-month-old ATM robbery case at Arambol.
Superintendent of Police (North) Chandan Choudhary informed the media that the arrest of Ilia Alexsandrovich Shtennikov (30), led to another raid wherein three others Radik Vafin (35), Evgenii Zakharin (38) and Igor Markov (32) were caught red-handed with commercial quantity of drugs.
Based on intelligence inputs, the Pernem police team raided the rented apartment of Shtennikov and seized cannabis plants (weighing 608 gms). The amount of the seized narcotics is valued at Rs 65,000 in the international market. “During his interrogation, Shtennikov revealed that some more foreigners are involved in drug-related activities. Accordingly, another rented house at Danoswada in Mandrem was raided wherein the three other Russian nationals were caught with commercial quantity of drugs amounting to Rs 7 lakh approx,” she said, while addressing the media at Porvorim on Saturday.
While Vafin was caught with 14 gms of ecstasy tablets, 4.69 gms of MDMA and 1.037 ganja (all worth Rs 2.09 lakh), Zakharin was found in possession of 13 gms of ecstasy tablets, 1.24 gms of cocaine and 1.206 gms of ganja (Rs 2.38 lakh) and Markov was caught with 12 gms of ecstasy tablets, 1.245 kg ganja (Rs 2.32 lakh).
“The accused were growing ganja at their rented premises,” she said, adding that the Russians are on a tourist visa in Goa. They will be booked for another offence for not filling the mandatory C-form while hiring accommodation for themselves.
“We have cracked down on drug-related activities in a pro-active manner, particularly in the coastal belt,” she added, as she spelt out a number of raids carried out in the northern coastal belt during the last two years.
The year 2018 saw 88 narcotics cases registered in the North district wherein 54 non Goans, 25 foreigners and 12 Goans were arrested. The total seized drugs were valued at approximately Rs 84.55 lakh.
