Ahmedabad’s medical tourism has been hailed for long. From kidney and heart transplants to surrogates, Gujarat has been pioneering trends in healthcare. However, when the crime branch was tipped off about such a “medical case” also dabbling in “making ammunition,” sleuths immediately swung into action. On further investigation, it was unearthed that the weapon parts are shipped to Yemen, for use in the ongoing civil war.
The crime branch has reason to believe that instead of making the whole gun, the accused was making different parts and sending them abroad. “He is not alone. We haver recovered a catalogue with photos of the various parts,” briefed an official insider. An investigation is on to ascertain how many contrabands have already been shipped. The accused is being interrogated via a translator from Rajkot.
According to the Crime Branch, Abdul Aziz Al-Azzani, a Yemeni national, was in India on a medical visa from his father’s treatment. The patient’s medical work done, he returned home but Abdul stayed back at an apartment in GIDC, Ahmedabad. “It was from here that he structured the business. He obviously has been helped by local hands. We are looking into the case,” added the source.
When the crime branch team raided the address on Feb 10, they also found computerized graphics of different parts of the rifle and various catalogues of the engineering company, of “headquartered” in Room 211 of Hotel Sky Inn near Nikol Ring Road. The accused did not have any license to own or purchase rifle parts as well as to import or export it. His friend, one Munir Muhammad Qasim, also a Yemen national, is under the scanner.
