Breaking Bad Greater Noida Edition: Meth worth Rs 350 crore seized in 2 weeks

What distinguishes Walter White, the popular character from the TV show Breaking Bad, who cooked meth in Albuquerque, US, from the nine foreigners who were producing the synthetic drug in their rented apartment? Apart from not having camcer, the nine were using their kitchen and the entire house (and not just the basement or some RV van) to cook meth.

Meth or crystal meth is a colloquial term for methamphetamine, which is a highly addictive and potent synthetic stimulant drug. It is becoming more and more common in India leaving behind marijuana or cocaine, according to NCB as reported by The Print. 

What is the case?

In a significant drug bust, the Noida Police raided a two-storey rented house in the Mitra Enclave colony of Beta-2, Greater Noida, uncovering approximately 30kg of methamphetamine. The estimated value of the seized drugs was around Rs 150 crore. Two foreign nationals were apprehended during the operation on Tuesday (May 30).

• The initial breakthrough came from interrogating the foreigners arrested during a previous raid on May 17 at a house in Theta-2 (Greater Noida). During that raid, meth worth Rs 200 crore was recovered.
• The information provided by one of the arrested individuals, who was the head of operations, led the police to the location of the second lab.
• Investigations have revealed that the same organized criminal gang was behind both the labs, which had been operational for at least a year.

Authorities suspect that the gang may have already sold drugs worth a staggering Rs 1,000 crore, making this one of the 'biggest drug hauls in UP', reported TOI

During the May 17 raid, the police seized 46kg of methamphetamine and confiscated raw materials worth Rs 100 crore. Out of the ten foreigners arrested, nine were from Nigeria and one from Senegal.

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An equipped house aka laboratory 

The rented house in the quiet Theta-2 neighbourhood (my landlord will not allow a loud party and people are cooking meth) had been transformed into a fully equipped laboratory, containing a range of equipment such as flasks, beakers, burettes, funnels including chemicals like methyl alcohol, hypophosphoric acid, hydrosulfuric acid, iodine crystals, ammonia, ephedrine, acetone, sulfur, copper salts and of course meth.

Now, police are diligently tracing the gang's network and financial transactions to determine the extent of their drug supply operations.

We tried looking for some of this stuff online, that is required to cook meth online, and we were not surprised:

We understand that we are not like Walter White, nor are we capable of cooking meth. However, we attempted to search online for stuff needed to cook meth in the comfort of your own home. And most of the chemicals were easily available.

Chemicals: 

• Methyl alcohol: Available online

• Hypophosphoric acid: Raw form not available 

• Iodine crystals: Available online 

• Ammonia: Available online

• Ephedrine: Not available 

• Acetone: Easily available 

• Sulfur: Available

• Copper salts: Available