ED arrests drug lord Chhabra on money laundering charges

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ludhiana-based drug lord Akshay Chhabra, who was lodged in Assam's Dibrugarh jail, for further investigation into the money trail involving cross-border drug smuggling racket.

- Navrajdeep Singh

JALANDHAR:

The federal agency took him into its custody till April 7 based on an investigation being carried out under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

In November 2022, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) arrested Chhabra along with two Afghan nationals for allegedly smuggling 2,000kg heroin into Punjab in connivance with Dubai-based drug smuggler Haji Yusuf.

The NCB had on August 17 detained two smugglers—Chhabra and Jaspal Singh, alias Goldy—lodged in Bathinda jail under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act and sent them to Dibrugarh jail.

Based on NCB's investigation, the ED had initiated a detailed probe into the matter in March 2023 and carried out multiple raids on the premises owned by top-notch realtors and liquor barons as both ED and NCB suspected Chhabra of investing drug money into real estate and liquor companies.

In January last year, the ED grilled AAP's Mohali MLA Kulwant Singh for nearly seven hours following alleged investments by Chhabra in his real estate company.