Srinagar, Aug 29 : Unknown gunmen killed a narcotics smuggler at Karnah in J&K's Kupwara district, officials said on Tuesday. "During the intervening night of 28/29-08-2023, at about 2200 hrs some sound of gunshots were heard in Haridal area of PP Teetwal Karnah. Upon hearing the gunshots, a swift search operation was launched by local Police and Army unit in the area," police said. "The search operation led to the discovery of the lifeless body of Mukhtar Ahmad Shah, aged 42 hailing from Panjtaran Karnah. "The deceased's body was found in the village of Pingla Haridal. The police promptly transferred the body to SDH Tangdhar for necessary medico-legal procedures. Subsequent to the post-mortem examination, the body was handed over to the family for final rites. A case has been registered under appropriate sections, and a thorough investigation has been initiated. "From the preliminary investigations, it appears that the deceased has been killed by some rival narcotics smuggling gang members or the rival terror operatives," police said. Police said Mukhtar Ahmad Shah was a high-profile narcotics smuggler and a person of deep connections among narcotics smugglers in the region. He had been found involved in two cases of narcotics and weapons smuggling in the recent past and had confessed to orchestrating the transportation of substantial quantities of narcotics and weaponry across the border. The police said that his brother, Sadiq Shah, is a terrorist commander and a supplier of narcotics and weapons from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (POJK), which underscores the depth of his involvement in these illicit activities. "Sadiq Shah is himself charge-sheeted in narco-terror cases and happens to be a top terrorist commander based in POJK," police said. "Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that the Shah family has been entangled in various legal cases relating to narcotics and weapons smuggling. At least six other members of the Mukhtar Ahmad Shah's family are currently facing charges in connection to these criminal activities." /IANS