Delhi Police bust Nigerian-run drug syndicate; drugs worth ₹5 cr seized
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has busted an international drug-trafficking syndicate operated by Nigerians with the arrest of two foreign nationals and seizure of cocaine and MDMA worth around Rs 5 crore, an officer said on Sunday.
The arrests were made by the Delhi Police's Crime Branch in a coordinated operation carried out in different parts of the city.
Police seized 418 grams of cocaine and 925 tablets of MDMA, also known as ecstasy, during the operation.
According to police, the Crime Branch was closely monitoring the activities of drug suppliers active in Delhi.
"On December 2 last year, the unit received specific information that a Nigerian national, previously involved in NDPS cases, had resumed supplying psychotropic substances in south Delhi," the police officer said.
A team launched technical and manual surveillance and the suspect was found to be constantly changing his locations across south and southwest Delhi to evade detection, he added.
"The team conducted a raid and arrested Frank Vitus Ume, recovering a substantial quantity of cocaine and MDMA tablets from his possession. A case under the NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) Act was registered and further investigation taken up," the officer said.
During interrogation, Ume disclosed that he was part of an organised drug-supply network operating in Delhi and adjoining states. A technical analysis of his mobile phone and further investigation led police to another Nigerian national, Sunday Otuu, who was residing in the Mehrauli area.
Otuu was arrested from his rented accommodation and 15 ecstasy tablets were seized from his possession. Police said Otuu was supplying drugs to Ume and acting as a link between the local distributor and the kingpin based in Nigeria.
Investigations revealed that the syndicate used WhatsApp numbers registered abroad and avoided direct contact between handlers and couriers to evade law-enforcement agencies. The drugs were reportedly delivered through intermediaries, including a woman, a foreign national based in Delhi, police said.
According to police, both accused came to India on business visas several years ago and later, became involved in drug trafficking due to financial difficulties.
Further investigation is on to identify the other members of the syndicate and trace the source of the narcotics, the officer added.
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Europe warns of 'dangerous downward spiral' after Trump threatens tariffs over Greenland
Berlin (AP): The eight European countries targeted by US President Donald Trump for a 10 per cent tariff for opposing American control of Greenland blasted the move Sunday, warning that the American leader's threats “undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral.”
In an unusual and very strong joint statement coming from major US allies, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland on Sunday said troops sent to Greenland for the Danish military training exercise “Arctic Endurance” pose “no threat to anyone.”
Trump's Saturday announcement sets up a potentially dangerous test of US partnerships in Europe. The Republican president appeared to indicate that he was using the tariffs as leverage to force talks over the status of Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark that he regards as critical to US national security.
“We stand in full solidarity with the Kingdom of Denmark and the people of Greenland," the group said. “Building on the process begun last week, we stand ready to engage in a dialogue based on the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity that we stand firmly behind. Tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral.”
There are immediate questions about how the White House could try to implement the tariffs because the EU is a single economic zone in terms of trading.
It was unclear, too, how Trump could act under US law, though he could cite emergency economic powers that are currently subject to a US Supreme Court challenge.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said China and Russia will benefit from the divisions between the US and Europe. She added in a post on social media: “If Greenland's security is at risk, we can address this inside NATO. Tariffs risk making Europe and the United States poorer and undermine our shared prosperity."
Trump's move was also panned domestically.
US Sen. Mark Kelly, a former US Navy pilot and Democrat who represents Arizona, posted that Trump's threatened tariffs on US allies would make Americans “pay more to try to get territory we don't need.”
“Troops from European countries are arriving in Greenland to defend the territory from us. Let that sink in,” he wrote on social media. “The damage this President is doing to our reputation and our relationships is growing, making us less safe. If something doesn't change we will be on our own with adversaries and enemies in every direction.”
'These tariffs will hurt us'
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Six of the countries targeted are part of the 27-member EU, which operates as a single economic zone in terms of trading. It was not immediately clear if Trump's tariffs would impact the entire bloc. EU envoys scheduled emergency talks for Sunday evening to determine a potential response.
The tariff announcement even drew blowback from Trump's populist allies in Europe.
Italy's right-wing premier, Giorgia Meloni, considered one of Trump's closest allies on the continent, said Sunday she had spoken to him about the tariffs, which she described as “a mistake.”
The deployment to Greenland of small numbers of troops by some European countries was misunderstood by Washington, Meloni told reporters. She said the deployment was not a move against the US but aimed to provide security against “other actors” that she didn't name.
French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on social media that “no intimidation or threats will influence us, whether in Ukraine, Greenland or anywhere else in the world when we are faced with such situations." He added that "tariff threats are unacceptable and have no place in this context.”
Jordan Bardella, president of Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally party in France and also a European Parliament lawmaker, posted that the EU should suspend last year's tariff deal with the US, describing Trump's threats as “commercial blackmail.”
Trump also achieved the rare feat of uniting Britain's main political parties — including the hard-right Reform UK party — all of whom criticised the tariff threat.
“We don't always agree with the US government and in this case we certainly don't. These tariffs will hurt us,” Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, a longtime champion and ally of Trump, wrote on social media. He stopped short of criticising Trump's designs on Greenland.
Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who leads the centre-left Labour Party, said the tariffs announcement was “completely wrong” and his government would “be pursuing this directly with the US administration.”
The foreign ministers of Denmark and Norway are also expected to address the crisis Sunday in Oslo during a news conference.
