Chandigarh, Aug 13 (IANS): In a joint operation with the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Punjab Police have detained notorious drugs smuggler Balwinder Singh alias Billa Sarpanch from Gurdaspur, Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said here on Tuesday.

The accused, who is a native of Havelian village in Tarn Taran district and was presently out on bail, faces over 15 criminal cases, majority of them under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, and Arms Act.

The DGP said Billa has been detained under Section 3 (1) of the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in NDPS Act, and sent to Dibrugarh in Assam.

The detainee will be lodged in Dibrugarh jail during his detention period, he said, adding that Billa was part of trans-border drug smuggling networks involving Pakistani smugglers.

Senior Superintendent of Police (Amritsar Rural), Charanjit Singh, said that following reliable inputs about the presence of Billa in the Gurdaspur area, the police in a joint operation with the NCB detained the accused drugs smuggler.

Further investigations are on to trace his other accomplices and identify the Pakistan-based drugs smugglers, he added.

In 2019, the police nabbed Billa who had been evading arrest for more than two decades. He allegedly had links with Pakistan-based drugs smugglers and was wanted by the Intelligence Bureau and Punjab’s anti-drugs Special Task Force (STF) for his involvement in trans-border smuggling.

The police also recovered 750 gm heroin from the accused along with 32 SIM cards which he allegedly used to contact his clients.