Drug
Bengaluru: In a major breakthrough in the probe into a multi-crore fake drug racket, the special investigation team (SIT) arrested 44-year-old medical representative R Prashanth Babu early Monday morning at Kempegowda International Airport. Prashanth, a resident of Papareddypalya in Bengaluru, was taken into custody around 5.30am after arriving from Sharjah. His arrest follows the issuance of a red corner notice against him after police and health officials raided a stockhouse in Tavarekere on Aug 18, seizing counterfeit drugs worth approximately ₹5 crore. Upon arrival, SIT sleuths apprehended Prashanth and produced him before a local court in Ramanagara, which remanded him to 9-day police custody.
Finally, the medicines reached Prashanth,” sources said. We also told her that it would be better for him to return to India at the earliest, as it would allow us to proceed with the investigation. Convinced by his wife and following repeated warnings from SIT, he agreed to return,” a senior officer told TOI.
The arrest followed his recent detention in Azerbaijan for attempting to smuggle medicines. Police have already arrested eight people including kingpin Veeresh Kumar Jain, who ran Krupa Health Care at Minerva Circle. Embassy officials subsequently arranged for his deportation back to Bengaluru. “He had forgotten to carry his prescription. His wife, who was in touch with us, requested our help in arranging his medicines while he was in customs custody. We communicated with the customs officials again and shared his prescription and details of the medicines he needed. “Prashanth was regularly speaking to his wife and son over video calls. We explained to his wife that Prashanth would eventually have to face police. If he wanted to evade us, he would have to keep travelling to other countries, which would cost him a lot. The racket came to light after a labourer in CK Tandya village near Dodderi spotted discarded medicine waste, including vials, tubes and powder, dumped in a field. He alerted Shivaraj, a constable with Tavarekere police station.
Investigation revealed that Prashanth had travelled to Azerbaijan in early Aug under the guise of a business trip. customs officials at Heydar Aliyev International Airport in Baku caught him along with two Turkish men attempting to smuggle boxes of Turkish medicine into the country While there.