Manipur: Three, including woman, arrested with drugs worth Rs 5 crore near Tengnoupal

Imphal: A joint team of the Anti-Narcotics Task Force (ANTF) of Manipur Police and the Assam Rifles arrested three alleged smugglers, including a woman, and recovered contraband drugs worth around Rs 5 crore in the international illicit trade, officials said on Monday.

Acting on specific intelligence inputs that anti-social elements were attempting to carry out illegal trade from Churachandpur district, the joint team remained on high alert and intercepted a vehicle heading towards the Tamenglong district headquarters in Manipur on January 11, 2026.

Tamenglong district shares borders with Assam and Nagaland.

During the operation, the team intercepted the vehicle at a naka checkpoint under Tengnoupal Police Station in Tengnoupal district and arrested three drug smugglers who were travelling in it.

The arrested persons were identified as James Baite (28) of Tengnoupal district, Hatneikim Baite (50) of Tengnoupal district, and David T. Mate (41) of Churachandpur district.

From their possession, the police recovered approximately 5.89 kg of WY tablets, a four-wheeler Mahindra Bolero bearing registration number MZ-01F-5013, three mobile phones, and three Aadhaar cards.

The letters “WY” imprinted on the seized tablets typically stand for “World Is Yours”, a street name associated with the drug commonly known as “yaba”, which contains a potent and addictive mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine.

Police added that the accused have been booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (Amendment) Act, 2023. All seized items are in the custody of the concerned police station for further legal proceedings.