Businessman facing losses during lockdown held for trying to sell opium

Hyderabad — A 40-year-old businessman was arrested here on Saturday for allegedly trying to sell opium after facing financial problems due to the coronavirus lockdown, police said.

He was nabbed during a vehicle check near Old Bowenpally area here and 300 grams of opium worth Rs 1.2 lakh was seized from him, a police press release said.

The man, running two tile shops in Telangana and a native of Rajasthan, had gone to his native state as his shops were closed due to the lockdown and he incurred heavy losses.

One of his friends advised him to sell opium to overcome the losses and sold him 300 grams of the narcotic.

The businessman returned to Hyderabad in June and was on his way to Secunderabad to deliver the drug to customers when he was nabbed during a vehicle check, police said.

The businessman's friend is absconding and efforts were on to nab him, they said.