Mafia takes control of Indian drug trade

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33487, 19 March 1974, Page 20

Mafia takes control of Indian drug trade

(N.Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright)

NEW DELHI.

The Mafia, that much-dreaded syndicate usually associated with the United States underworld, has entered India with a bang. Described there as “the world’s biggest crime syndicate,' it has already taken over the bulk of the 1000-million-rupee drug trade in India and it is also trying to expand into the equally lucrative crime business.

The Government is seriously concerned at the Mafia's activities and has ordered special police alerts in the capital and throughout the country.

The Government means business in its attempt to stem the spread of the Mafia.

Its anti-smuggling force has been given an additional 20 high-speed launches, bought from Norway, to intercept the drug boats approaching the west coast. It is likely that more of these launches will be added to the fleet. The drug patrol! would like about 100 to cover the long coastline. The Mafia has been operating in many countries outside Sicily, where it originated, and the United States, where it became firmly entrenched with the arrival of Italian immigrants. Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines have all been penetrated.

The end of the war in Vietnam was a major blow to the Mafia’s hopes for a deep penetration of Asia. The organisation found Vietnam very profitable because of the sizeable traffic in opium and heroin smuggling for supply to American and South Vietnamese troops. Then the Mafia evidently thought that India would be fertile ground to cultivate for India accounts for 85 per cent of the world’s opium exports — strictly for medicinal purposes. Official sources say that India exported 1,276 million rupees of opium in 19711972. Britain was the biggest buyer, taking 33 million rupees followed by the U.S.A, with 27 million rupees.

Top figure Police in New Delhi be-: lieve that a high-ranking! Mafia figure, referred to as| Ricardo alias Sartonni,; visited India twice last year! to arrange the relocation of! its headquarters on the sub-; continent. On both occasions Ricardo stayed at hotels in Delhi, accompanied by a posse of bodyguards, and held a series of meetings with his Indian contacts. A “fabulous” amount of money was spent on entertainment.

What has really alarmed the authorities in India is that the Mafia has started to make arrangements for the establishment of laboratories in India to refine heroin and cocaine.

The Department of Narcotics, part of the country’s Finance. Ministry, is doing everything it can to loosen the Mafia’s foothold. It is difficult task, because the trafficking in opium has been increasing in India in recent years.

The dossier being built-up on the Mafia’s penetration of India indicates the spread of interest beyond drugs. The smuggling in of foreign goods has already started to affect black-market prices. A packet of 20 foreign cigarettes has tumbled in price from 5.5 rupees to 3.5 rupees.

Imported synthetic fibre clothes, transitor radios, watches and cigarette lighters, have also come down in price.

Customs seizures Seizures by the Customs ■ have increased considerably' i and there has been a fall in the re-sale price of these: , confiscated goods. These price falls indicate . a progressive increase in . smuggling. ,

The Mafia is also known to be getting a grip on gambling, especially the “numbers game” which is reckoned to have a turnover now of at least 20 million rupees a day. Reliable sources say that as part of a plan for expansion, a seminar for smugglers was held recently at Bangalore. It was attended by India’s reputed “king of smugglers” who lives in Bombay. He is said to have told the seminar that the target for smuggling luxury goods alone is 3000 million rupees with a “protection" levy of five per cent.

i This “king of smugglers" i is one of several brothers — ; posted at strategic points in ; several countries — who run - the Indian gold smugglingi foreign currency racket. This Indian family syndi- . cate is by no means as ex- • tensive as “The Family” of ■ the Mafia set-up, but its r dealings run into astrono- ■ mical figures, and author- ; itative sources now say that i the Indian Family has enter- > ed into an agreement with ; the Mafia Family on zones > of operation and profits percentages — Copyright. ’ World Feature Services Ltd, 1974. ■