The Hyderabad City Police, in a joint operation with the Hyderabad Narcotic Enforcement Wing (H-NEW), arrested a Yemeni national and his Palestinian associate in a drug trafficking case and seized MDMA worth ₹25 lakh from their possession, on March 4.
The accused were identified as Al-Aqar Abdurabu Mohammed Abdurabu (37), a Yemeni national residing in Tolichowki, Hyderabad, and Hasan W. A. Hashem (28), a Palestinian national who was residing in Bengaluru.
Acting on information, police teams conducted a joint operation within the limits of Rajendra Nagar Police Station and apprehended the two accused. During the operation, the police seized 150 grams of MDMA, a knife and four mobile phones, collectively valued at around ₹25 lakh.
A case has been registered against them under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and Section 14 of the Foreigners Act.
According to police, Abdurabu had been residing in the Tolichowki area and was already involved in several drug-related cases. He was arrested in six NDPS cases between 2019 and 2022, while he was absconding in two more cases registered in 2023 and 2026.
Tolichowki in Hyderabad has been in the news for several troubling incidents. Recently, police traced Bondi Beach attacker Naveed Akram to the area, while the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) arrested Chinese medical graduate Dr Ahmed Mohiyuddin Saiyed for allegedly attempting to produce the deadly poison ricin.
His associate, Hasan Hashem was previously involved in a case registered under the NDPS Act and the Foreigners Act in 2022 at Yelahanka New Town police station in Bengaluru.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Rajendra Nagar Zone, S. Srinivas, said Abdurabu initially began as a drug consumer before turning into a peddler. He allegedly procured narcotics such as MDMA and cocaine from a Nigerian supplier.
Police said Hasan assisted Abdurabu in collecting the drugs from the supplier and distributing them to consumers in Hyderabad and Bengaluru at higher prices.
The investigation revealed that Abdurabu first came to India in 2008 on a tourist visa and later returned in 2009 on a student visa, enrolling for BCA at Bharath College, Pune, which he discontinued. In 2011, he moved to Hyderabad and joined Sikkim Manipal University, but left midway. He returned to Yemen in 2012 and re-entered India in August 2015 on a student visa through RGI Airport, Hyderabad. His visa expired in 2015 and was extended until December 31, 2016, while his passport expired on April 16, 2020. He later enrolled for B.Tech at JNTU Hyderabad, but discontinued it in the second year.
Police said Abdurabu came in contact with a Delhi-based drug supplier identified as Chidi, through Palestinian national Saeed Ali Mohammad Al Kafri, who was arrested by H-NEW in 2024. Investigators said Abdurabu had sheltered Chidi in his Hyderabad residence for around eight months before the latter was arrested by the police.
Officials said Abdurabu was previously arrested in NDPS cases registered by the Ameerpet Excise Station and the M.G. Road Police in Bengaluru, and had been sent to judicial custody on multiple occasions.
This appears to indicate an organised interstate and international drug network operating in Hyderabad, with peddlers active in different areas under various identities.
