The accused was found carrying six firearms, including four 7 mm pistols and two 9 mm pistols in her bag.
Photo: ANI/Representative
In a major breakthrough against suspected interstate arms trafficking, the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID), in a joint operation with Ashoknagar Police, arrested a woman and seized a cache of firearms, ammunition and cash from her possession in North 24-Parganas on Sunday.
The CID has since constituted a four-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by a DIG-rank officer, to probe the wider network behind the haul.
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Acting on specific intelligence inputs, the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the CID, led by a DIG-rank officer and assisted by Ashoknagar Police, intercepted a goods vehicle, locally known as a “Magic” van, on the Naihati-Ashoknagar Road near the 8 No. junction during the morning.
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The team detained Puja Biswas, a resident of Ward No. 12 under Habra Municipality. During the search, officers recovered four 7mm firearms, two 9mm firearms, 12 magazines, around 200 rounds of 7.6mm live ammunition, Rs 12,000 in cash and two mobile phones from her possession.
CID officials said Biswas had earlier been arrested in connection with an arms recovery case in Duttapukur, and investigators are now examining whether she has links to a larger interstate arms smuggling syndicate.
Preliminary investigation has revealed that the weapons are suspected to have originated from the Jamalpur Ordnance Factory in Bihar. The CID has already established contact with the factory authorities to verify whether any weapons are missing and to trace the batch numbers of the seized firearms.
Investigators are also coordinating with the Bihar Police through the SIT to reconstruct the route taken by the consignment after it left Jamalpur and identify the intended recipients of the weapons.
Officials said a train ticket to Jamalpur was recovered from the accused, strengthening suspicions of a Bihar connection. The document is being examined to establish her movements and possible links with suppliers and other members of the alleged trafficking network.
According to investigators, one of the key objectives of the probe is to determine why such a large quantity of arms was allegedly being transported in the post-election period and whether the consignment was intended for any organised criminal or other unlawful activities.
“We will interrogate the accused to ascertain the source of procurement, the transportation route and the intended market for these weapons. Establishing these links will help us dismantle the larger network,” an investigating officer said.
The interception created a stir in the area as the vehicle was stopped on a busy stretch of road in broad daylight. Local residents gathered near the spot after news of the seizure spread.
Investigators said the accused appeared to be an ordinary commuter, dressed in a salwar kameez with her head covered by a scarf, and did not initially arouse suspicion. However, acting on precise intelligence, the CID intercepted the vehicle and recovered the arms cache.
Officials said the operation reflects the CID’s renewed focus on intelligence-based preventive action under the leadership of newly appointed DIG (CID) Natarajan Ramesh Babu, in line with the Chief Minister’s directives emphasising preventive arrests and proactive intelligence gathering.
The arrest is being viewed by investigators as a significant step in cracking down on long-standing allegations of interstate arms and ammunition smuggling networks operating in the state. The SIT will continue its investigation to establish the full extent of the racket, its interstate links and whether further arrests are likely in the coming days.
The accused will be produced before a court after completion of preliminary interrogation.
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