Rodent Munchies: Rats Blamed for Missing Cannabis in Indian Police Warehouse

A police prosecutor told court that rats “have no fear of the police” and that authorities lack the expertise necessary to deal with the rodent problem.

Voracious rats have been blamed for the apparent loss of tens of kilograms of cannabis stored in a police lockup in the Indian state of Uttar Prades.

Authorities made the statement after being asked by court to present over 500 kilograms of the narcotic substance that was seized by authorities in two separate cases and stored in the warehouses of Shergarh and Highway police station as evidence.

In one case, the police said that some 195 kilograms of marijuana they seized got “destroyed” by rats, while in another, a police report stated that some of the 386 kilograms of the confiscated drug was eaten by rodents.

"There is no place in the police station where the stored goods can be saved from the rats. The remaining marijuana from the huge consignment was destroyed by officers," a police prosecutor complained to court. "Being small in size, the rats have no fear of the police, nor can the police officers be considered experts in solving the problem."

Responding to these developments, the court ordered the police to resolve the rat problem and to present proof that the missing cannabis was actually destroyed by rodents, demanding a report with evidence to be submitted by November 26.