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CBE Police Cracks Nationwide Drug Syndicate Targeting College Students; Ugandan Inmate In Bengaluru Jail Suspected As Mastermind Operating Via WhatsApp Groups

Three weeks after Coimbatore police apprehended six youths in possession of 102 grams of methamphetamine powder and 1.2 kg of ganja, investigators have homed in on the alleged mastermind, Aivan Gabonge, a Ugandan national serving a jail sentence in a drug-related case at Parappana Agrahara Central Prison. It is reported that Gabonge, purportedly the partner of a Kenyan woman previously arrested by the investigating team in Bengaluru, is believed to be orchestrating a nationwide drug network through WhatsApp groups.

Sources indicate that Coimbatore police intend to request the Karnataka Government to detain Gabonge for questioning in order to dismantle the extensive network he is alleged to be operating.

Following statements provided by the six detained individuals, investigators apprehended Vinoth, who confessed to obtaining the narcotics from Praveen Kumar, a Bengaluru-based call taxi driver. It was revealed that Praveen sourced the drugs via a WhatsApp group, facilitating transactions through UPI payments. The narcotics procured through this avenue were predominantly distributed to college students, as per investigative findings.

Utilizing Praveen as a covert operative, law enforcement tracked the transactions to Ivy Bonuke (26), a Kenyan law student enrolled in a Dharwad-based college. Allegedly acting at the direction of Aivan Gabonge, Ivy was arrested by authorities at a Bengaluru shopping mall while conducting transactions using the bank account of another Ugandan national who had departed India in December after completing studies at Delhi University. Transactions totaling ₹45 lakh were recorded between December 2023 and May 2024.

Earlier this week, Vinoth, Praveen, and Ivy were remanded to judicial custody by city police. Ivy is currently detained at Puzhal Prison in Chennai.

(with inputs from The Hindu)

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