Gujarat: 144 kilos of marijuana stolen from police station's custody

In what turned out to be a major embarrassment for the local police, roughly 144 kg of marijuana worth Rs 8.60 lakh was stolen from Virsad police station in Gujarat's Anand district.

The contraband was found stolen from the custody room located behind the police station. Virsad police have registered a case against unknown people for stealing the stock.

Shobhana Vaghela, head constable of Virsad police station, said in her complaint that when she reached the police station on Saturday morning, she went to the detention room. Inside the custody room, she saw a bag of marijuana lying away from another stock in the custody room.

Later, she also noticed that the iron grill of the window of the room was broken and the bricks adjacent to the window had been removed. After informing her superiors and associates, the head constable and other staff of the police station cross-checked the seized marijuana stock in connection with a case registered under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act in September 2018.

In September 2018, a total of 56 bags of marijuana were seized by the police. After checking the records, the police found that out of 56 bags that were kept in the custody room, four were missing.

As per the details, one sack contained 34.29 kg marijuana worth Rs 2.05 lakh, the second contained 36.39 kg marijuana worth Rs 2.18 lakh, the third contained 33.90 kg marijuana worth Rs 1.98 lakh and the fourth contained 39.60 kg marijuana worth Rs 2.18 lakh. The total street price tag of the contraband was estimated at Rs 2.37 lakh.

The police have registered offenses related to trespass, house breaking and theft under sections 454, 457 and 380 of the Indian Penal Code.