PANAJI
Pinheiro conducted a four-hour long session for around 35 members of Anti-Narcotics task force committee of Goa Police on the topic of global scene of drug trafficking, drug seizures, narco-terrorism.
Members of Directorate of Revenue, Customs, Excise, Food and Drugs Administration and Directorate of Health Services were among those who attended the session.
: 12px;">Sharing his experience in conducting and supervising narco-seizures, Pinhero touched upon various aspects of drug trafficking such as types of narcotics, global and regional drug trafficking scenario, magnitude of illegal trafficking and routes, demand and supply of illegal narcotics, narco-terrorism and modus operandi vis a vis detection.
Speaking to The Goan after the session, Pinhero said, “India is a growing market for cocaine, methamphetamine and LSD. Other narcotics such as hashish and heroin are on the rise too. However, drug cartels and syndicates tend to use the route of Punjab-Delhi-Mumbai to transport drugs out of the country through their human couriers, especially vulnerable women from foreign countries, to the international market.”
Internationally, Pinheiro said the ‘Golden Triangle’ and ‘Golden Crescent’ continue to thrive with narco-terrorism flourishing around these areas. The money generated through drug trafficking is pumped into terrorism and is used in buying weapons by almost all international terror groups including the ISIS, it was informed.
“Fifty percent of annual hashish seizures in India are sourced to Nepal. These cartels are suspected to have links with Naxalites and Maoists,” Pinheiro said.
Having worked across the country in various settings and with years’ of experience in conducting successful seizures, Pinhiero observed that although the detection rate in the country has remained steady, the rate of consumption, especially consumption of synthetic drugs, has sky-rocketed. “Synthetic drugs are easy to produce. It only needs formula, cheap raw material and a room as small as a toilet to produce huge quantities of synthetic drugs,” he said.
In his address to Goa’s cops, Pinheiro stressed on the need to undertake thorough profiling of passengers, overstaying foreign nationals and even the smallest of drug peddlers while keeping an eye on laid-off industries, which form a Continued from P1
prime target of drug cartels who prefer to carry out their trade under the banner of these industries.
“What starts off as gangs soon grows into a domestic cartel,” he said.
Pinheiro also highlighted that the preferred mode of transport even within the country is by air because chances of getting caught or being spotted with drugs are higher in case of road transport.
When he asked about the type of difficulties that Goa Police faces, Pinheiro discovered that the main difficulty springs from the unwillingness of people to be a panch witnesses.
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