Narco-terror funding case: State Investigation Agency (SIA), Jammu, arrested a key accused in a narcotics smuggling module backed by Pakistan from the border township of Uri in north Kashmir’s Baramulla district, officials said on Saturday. The accused, Mohammad Sharief Chechi, was part of a terror-financing syndicate involved in the cross-border smuggling of narcotics, arms, and explosives.
According to SIA, there is a well-organized drug syndicate that includes Mohd. Sharief Chechi, Mohd Rafiq Najar, Farooq Ahmad Naikoo operating from Dubai, and others are infusing narcotics into the Indian territory to generate terror funds, to fuel subversive activities challenging the sovereignty, integrity, and security of India and further using banking channels for layering of proceeds of narcotics for funding of terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.
Chechi used to collect narcotics from across LOC
"During the investigation, it was revealed that the modus operandi adopted was that, Mohd. Sharief Chechi used to collect narcotics from across LOC viz PoK and these narcotics were used to generate proceeds for terror funding. Upon technical surveillance and human intelligence, a team of SIA led by inspector Vikas Sharma arrested Mohd. Sharief Chechi from Uri, Baramulla," he added.
Further investigation into aspects of cross LOC operation of this narco smuggling and terror funding syndicate, which has been found smuggling arms, explosives, and narcotics consignments across the LOC is ongoing at SIA Jammu.
The case was initially registered at Gandhi Nagar police station in Jammu. Later on, the instant case was transferred to SIA Jammu for further investigation.
Former minister Jatinder Singh was arrested
Following the arrest of former minister Jatinder Singh alias "Babu Singh" for receiving slush money sent from the valley to activate anti-India secessionist activities in Jammu region last year, several investigators have been simultaneously working on different lines at different places following multiple leads crisscrossing terror financing modules, narcotics syndicates and separatist networks with intersections partly within J-K and partly in Pakistan and some in middle eastern capitals.
Singh, chairman of Nature-Mankind Friendly Global Party, was arrested on April 9, last year, within days after he went underground following the arrest of his worker Mohammad Shareef Shah, a resident of south Kashmir's Kokernag, along with Rs 6.90 lakh hawala money in Jammu.
Shah had revealed that he was tasked by Singh, a resident of Kathua district, to collect the money, intended to be used for anti-national activities, from Srinagar. The chargesheet against the former minister and two others were already filed in the case here in September last year.
(With agencies input)
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