Short film photographer held for drug peddling in Hyderabad

Syed Azhar Hashmi, a resident of Krishna Nagar, Hyderabad worked as a short films photographer. Though initially he earned a good income, for the past two years, he could not make enough money and was exploring alternative sources of income

Hyderabad: A short films photographer, who took to drug peddling to make easy money was caught by the Excise Special Task Force officials, while selling drugs in the city on Thursday.

Syed Azhar Hashmi, a resident of Krishna Nagar, Hyderabad worked as a short films photographer. Though initially he earned a good income, for the past two years, he could not make enough money and was exploring alternative sources of income.

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He came in contact with M Kranthi Kumar from Banjara Hills, who apparently has some working knowledge about drugs and drug peddling. The duo decided to take up drug peddling and started illegally smuggling cocaine from Goa to Hyderabad and selling it to consumers.

According to the Excise officials, the duo bought one gram of cocaine for Rs 6,000 from drug peddlers in Goa and sold it to Rs 14,000 per gram to consumers, mostly to students and youth in Hyderabad and earned easy money. Already a drug related case was booked against Syed Azhar Hashmi in Dabeerpura in 2023.

“The duo smuggled the narcotic substance into the city mostly in public transport. They approach the consumers in their network and strike a deal or directly go to spots where students, youth, and elite people are found and search for prospective customers,” an excise official adding that focus is on the drug network including identities of other peddlers and consumers.

On Thursday, the duo had come to Jubilee Hills Road No.7 to sell cocaine to prospective consumers, when they were nabbed by the police. Officials seized 11.5 grams of the drug, 2 scooters and 2 mobile phones from them.

The arrested persons along with the seized material were handed over to the Jubilee Hills Excise police for further investigation. Case is under investigation.