Amritsar: In a major breakthrough against cross-border crime, the Amritsar Commissionerate Police has dismantled a Pakistan-linked arms and narcotics network and arrested five men from villages close to the International Border. The operation, carried out under the directives of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, led to the recovery of six sophisticated pistols and 1.01 kg of heroin.
Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav said on Sunday that the accused were in touch with handlers in Pakistan through social media platforms and were collecting and distributing illegal weapons and drug consignments across Punjab. The recovered arms include five .30-bore pistols and a Glock 9mm.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Akash Masih and Prince from Pandori village, Karanbir Singh alias Karan from Chaugawan, Sukhwinder Singh from Hetampura, and Gurbhej Singh alias Bheja from Lahian in Tarn Taran. All these villages lie close to the Indo-Pak border, a factor that facilitated the movement of illegal consignments.
DGP Yadav said investigators are now mapping the backward and forward linkages to trace the full network and identify the handlers involved.
Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Gurpreet Singh Bhullar said the first arrests were made during a planned Nakabandi near Chheharta, where Akash Masih and Prince were caught with a .30-bore pistol and a Glock 9mm. Technical surveillance led the police to Karanbir Singh and Sukhwinder Singh, from whom officers recovered three more .30-bore pistols and over a kilogram of heroin.
Based on the disclosure of Karanbir Singh, police later arrested Gurbhej Singh and seized another .30-bore pistol from him. The accused were allegedly redistributing weapons to criminal groups after receiving the consignments.
Two FIRs have been registered in connection with the operation—FIR No. 223 dated November 6, 2025, under Section 25 of the Arms Act at Police Station Chheharta, and FIR No. 239 dated November 12, 2025, under the Arms Act and relevant sections of the NDPS Act at Police Station Cantonment.
