Properties worth Rs 5.5 crore attached, bank account frozen in Kanpur codeine syrup crackdown

Kanpur (UP), Feb 12 (PTI): In a major action against the illegal trade of codeine-based cough syrup, a joint team of the Kanpur and Varanasi police commissionerates has attached properties worth about Rs 5.5 crore and frozen a bank account containing Rs 37 lakh linked to an accused currently in jail, officials said on Thursday. The action was taken against Vinod Agrawal, who is currently lodged in prison in connection with a case registered under the the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act at the Collectorganj police station. Police said that Agrawal acquired several movable and immovable properties using proceeds from the illegal sale and storage of codeine syrup. Invoking Section 68(F) of the NDPS Act, the police initiated proceedings to attach assets suspected to be proceeds of crime. Commissioner of Police Raghubir Lal told PTI that properties worth Rs 5.5 crore located in Gwaltoli, Chakeri, Collectorganj and Jajmau areas were identified and attached. An ICICI Bank account holding nearly Rs 37 lakh was also frozen as part of the financial probe, he added. The operation was carried out by a Varanasi commissionerate team led by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Sarnath, in coordination with Kanpur police, press communique issued by police stated. Officials said the move is aimed at crippling the financial network of those involved in narcotics trafficking rather than limiting action to arrests alone. A Special Investigation Team (SIT) examined bank transactions, property records and financial documents to trace the money trail. Further investigation into funding sources, investment patterns and possible associates is underway, officials said.