PNS|Hyderabad
In a shocking case of illegal drug abuse, a 17-year-old student died and two others were hospitalised in Balapur after injecting a highly addictive painkiller, Tapentadol Hydrochloride purchased for Rs 150 per tablet – nearly four times its market price.
Police arrested the peddler and the medical store owner involved in the illegal sale of the scheduled H1 drug.
The accused, Sayeed Sahil (21) of Shaheen Nagar, allegedly sold the tablets to three youth, including the deceased, after purchasing them illegally from Siroomani Jagannathan Praveen (54), owner of Srinivas Medical Store in Shamshabad.
Sahil had been procuring the tablets at Rs 45 each and selling them at inflated rates to addicted youngsters, police said.
On April 17, the victims crushed the tablets, mixed them with saline water, and injected themselves using syringes at a residence in Shaheen Nagar.
Soon after, they experienced dizziness. Later admitted in critical condition, they died at Osmania General Hospital on April 19. The other two remain in semi-conscious condition in Owaisi and Asra Hospitals.
Police launched an investigation after a grieving relative of the deceased shared a video on social media, appealing to authorities to act against drug peddlers and protect children from addiction.
A joint team from the Telangana Anti-Narcotics Bureau (TGANB) and Balapur Police arrested Sahil, who admitted to both addiction and peddling.
His confession led authorities to Srinivas Medical Store, where police seized Tapentadol tablets and matched batch numbers from the victims’ possession. CCTV footage and online transaction records also confirmed repeated purchases.
