An Instagram friendship led to the arrest of two young women at Secunderabad railway station for allegedly smuggling ganja from Visakhapatnam to Solapur in Maharashtra. Acting on a tip-off, the Secunderabad Government Railway Police (GRP) and Railway Protection Force (RPF) apprehended the suspects, Ishrat Bano (20) of Madhya Pradesh and Kanchan (21) of Chhattisgarh, on Friday.
The prime accused, identified as Raja from Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, remains at large. Police investigations revealed that Ishrat Bano and Kanchan were school friends from Bilaspur and shared common habits of alcohol consumption and smoking. Two years ago, Bano developed a friendship with Raja on Instagram, sharing her personal struggles and habits with him. Raja exploited this connection, offering Bano Rs. 1,000 per packet to assist him in smuggling ganja to Maharashtra. Bano reportedly helped Raja transport the contraband thrice a month.
Raja assigned Bano the task of transporting ganja to Solapur and, on January 16, 2025, she invited Kanchan to join her on the trip. During the journey, Bano disclosed her smuggling activities to Kanchan and persuaded her to participate by promising to share the earnings equally.
Also Read: Two Andhra cops injured as car smuggling Ganja runs over them
The duo traveled from Raipur to Visakhapatnam railway station, where Bano collected two backpacks containing eight packets of dry ganja from an unknown person. Bano handed one bag to Kanchan, and they boarded the general coach of the Konark Express, destined for Solapur.
Their journey was interrupted when the train reached Secunderabad station at 1:15 PM on Friday. GRP and RPF officers, noticing their suspicious behavior, detained them and found 17.767 kilograms of dry ganja worth Rs. 4.44 lakh in their possession. Two mobile phones were also seized.
The arrested women are now in custody, while efforts are underway to locate Raja, the prime suspect. The incident highlights the dangers of online relationships leading to criminal exploitation. Authorities have urged the public, especially young people, to exercise caution in forming connections on social media platforms.
(This story is sourced from a third-party syndicated feed. Raavi Media takes no responsibility or liability of any nature. Raavi Media management/ythisnews.com can alter or delete the content without notice for any reason.)
