BENGALURU: West division police have succeeded in nabbing a 35-year-old rowdy element-cum-drug peddler, who had successfully evaded cops for eight years.
Accused history-sheeter Mohammed Hameed of Ullala Upanagar was arrested on Wednesday by a special team comprising an ACP and three inspectors when he arrived in the city to arrange for finance.
Hameed, who is facing more than 15 criminal cases since 2013, purchased ganja from Andhra Pradesh and sold it here through his associates, said deputy commissioner of police (west) Sanjeev Patil. Hameed’s younger brother Mohammed Sadiq is also in custody.
In 2013, Vijayanagar police had arrested Hameed on drug-peddling charges. After getting bail, he remained elusive. “Thinking it would be risky for him to operate in the city, Hameed shifted base to Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. From there, he operated a drug mafia and extortion racket in west Bengaluru via his aides,” a police officer said.
Hameed would visit his wives and children in the city once a month, but return quickly to his hideouts. “His frequent travel and regular changing of hideouts were the main reasons behind our failure to trace him...,” the officer said. Recently, cops raided the houses of Hameed’s associates.
“We nabbed over a dozen of his associates, cutting down his activities and income. Facing a financial crisis, a desperate Hameed was forced to enter the city and we successfully laid a trap for him,” he said.
