NCB busts pan-India drug network forged in Tihar
In a major strike against drug trafficking, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has dismantled a sophisticated pan-India drug distribution network operating under the banner of Team Kalki. The operation, conducted in the national Capital, has exposed the deep-rooted nexus between online marketplaces and encrypted messaging platforms used to peddle synthetic drugs.
Following a three-month-long intelligence operation, NCB officials intercepted 13 domestic parcels and two international consignments from the Netherlands. The haul included 2,338 LSD blotters, 160 MDMA pills, 73.612 grams of charas, and 3.642 grams of amphetamine. Most notably, officials also seized 3.6 kg of liquid MDMA.
According to an NCB release, the investigation revealed that the network was orchestrated by two habitual offenders, Anurag Thakur and Vikas Rathi. The duo reportedly forged a partnership while in Tihar Jail for separate narcotics offences. Upon their release, they utilised an online forum to establish their vendor identity, later migrating to the encrypted messaging application to evade law enforcement surveillance and facilitate order fulfilment.
Officials suspect that over 1,000 consignments have been dispatched across India since January 2025. Consignments were routed to states including Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala, and Karnataka. To bypass detection, the traffickers utilised a “dead drop” delivery system in parts of Delhi and leveraged various courier services for pan-India dispatches, deliberately rotating booking offices for every order.
The accused, it is alleged, exclusively accepted payments in crypto currencies such as Monero and USDT. To obfuscate the audit trail, the funds were routed through multiple layers of intermediary wallets. In some instances, the network reportedly laundered proceeds into the formal banking system through mule KYC-compliant wallets.
