Mumbai: RPF constable rewarded for trapping African drug peddler

RPF Constable Salim Sheikh receiving the award

Railway Protection Force (RPF) constable, Salim Shaikh, who had managed to catch hold of an African drug peddler Kone Adama, even after being hit on his head with a bamboo stick, was given the Central Railway General Managers' award on Tuesday for his act of bravery.

According to the police, on October 18, the Dongri police had requested the RPF that they wanted to conduct a joint raid along the tracks near Wadi Bandar, Byculla and Sandhurst Road stations, as the drug peddlers were back in action there. Soon after, 20 RPF cops and 50 officers from the Dongri police station formed five teams and started the operation. Around 11.10 pm, when one of the teams spotted eight to 10 peddlers hiding behind a bush near the tracks, they alerted the other teams. However, on spotting the cops, the peddlers started pelting stones at them and even tried to escape.

However, Shaikh managed to catch hold of one of them, who tried to escape by hitting him on his head with a bamboo stick. He had suffered grievous injuries in the process. Even two other cops, who tried to help him, suffered minor injuries. The police immediately arrested Adama and sent Shaikh to the hospital. He was later discharged after treatment. Happy with Shaikh's efforts in arresting the peddler, Central Railway General Manager D K Sharma and other high-ranking RPF officers gave him the award as a token of appreciation.

Accomplices escaped
The police had seized 10 grams of cocaine and 16 grams of MD from Adama, who is a Nigerian national. Around six to seven of his accomplices had managed to flee under the cover of dark. He was arrested from the same spot where multiple attacks have taken place on the police in the past.

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