Court acquits man after police claim rats ate 200kg of marijuana

Police told court seized drugs could not be produced as evidence because they had been destroyed by rodents while in storeroom

Representative (AFP via Getty Images)

A court in the eastern India acquitted the main accused in a drug-trafficking case and criticised the police for serious failures in how evidence was handled after officials claimed rats ate nearly 200kg of seized marijuana worth about Rs 10m (£82,000).

The case dates back to 2022 when police in the state of Jharkhand said they intercepted a vehicle on a national highway and recovered large quantities of marijuana hidden inside.

However, during the trial, officers told the court that the drugs could not be produced as evidence because they had allegedly been destroyed by rodents in storage.

The judge said this explanation “casts a suspicion on the very seizure of the case and its handling by the police”.

The court found multiple inconsistencies in the testimony of police witnesses on basic details such as the exact location and timing of the stop, who detained the suspect, and how other alleged accomplices escaped, according to local media reports.

The court noted: “There are several contradictions in their statements… which casts a doubt whether the alleged accused was caught at the place as stated by the prosecution or from somewhere else.”

The court also said that no independent civilian witnesses were called, even though the alleged seizure took place on a busy highway surrounded by residential areas.

Prosecutors were further unable to prove any link between the accused and the vehicle in which the drugs were supposedly found.

The judgment stated: “No other paper of the vehicle has been brought before the court which could show that the vehicle was in any way associated with the accused.”

The court ruled that the charges had not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt and ordered the accused to be released. “With no material evidence left and the chain of custody completely broken, the benefit of doubt must go to the accused,” the court ruled, acquitting the main accused of all charges.

In July, a similar claim was made in Dhanbad, Jharkhand, where officials stated that rats had damaged liquor stored in government warehouses.