Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF), Lucknow unit, has arrested an alleged member of an inter-state narcotics trafficking gang and recovered 2.20 kilograms of illegal opium valued at approximately ₹11 lakh in the international market.
According to an official press note issued by the STF, the accused was identified as Mohammad Shahbaz alias Raju, a resident of West Champaran district in Bihar, currently residing in Jalandhar, Punjab.
The arrest was made late on the night of May 3, 2026, near Polytechnic Chauraha on the road leading towards Bhootnath in the Ghazipur police station area of Lucknow.
Along with the illegal opium, STF officials recovered two mobile phones, one debit card, Aadhaar card, PAN card, ₹4,000 in cash, and a roadways bus ticket from the accused.
The STF stated that it had been receiving intelligence inputs for some time regarding the active involvement of interstate narcotics smuggling gangs operating across various districts of Uttar Pradesh. Following the instructions of senior officials, a special team was formed under the supervision of Additional Superintendent of Police Vishal Vikram Singh.
The operation was led by Sub-Inspector Ram Naresh along with Sub-Inspector Manoj Singh and other STF personnel. Acting on a tip-off from a confidential informant, the STF team laid a trap near Polytechnic Chauraha after receiving information that a suspect carrying a large quantity of illegal opium was arriving from Bareilly.
The accused was apprehended during the operation, and the contraband was seized from his possession.
During interrogation, Mohammad Shahbaz reportedly told investigators that he is 24 years old and completed a B.Sc. in Chemistry from M.J.K. College, Bihar, in 2024. He said he had worked in civil construction projects in Pokhara, Nepal, from December 2024 to June 2025 but later entered the narcotics trade after coming in contact with a person named Rahul from Bihar, who allegedly operated a drug trafficking network from Jalandhar.
The accused claimed that after Rahul’s death in August 2025, he continued the illegal business independently due to the financial profits involved.
A case has been registered against the accused under relevant sections of the NDPS Act at Ghazipur Police Station in Lucknow Commissionerate. Further legal proceedings are being carried out by the local police.
