ATS seizes ₹53-cr mephedrone from Panvel lab; 5 held

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) raided a drug lab at Panvel which was being used to produce mephedrone. The police arrested five members of a gang and recovered 129 kilograms of mephedrone estimated to be worth ₹53 crore.

ATS officers said the accused had been running the laboratory for the last six months and were producing large quantities of mephedrone to supply to Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, and neighbouring districts.

The five arrested have been identified as Abdul Razzak Kadar Shaikh, 47; Irfan Badar Shaikh, 43; Suleman Jauhar Shaikh, 28; Naresh Maskar, 45, and Jitendra Parmar alias Asif, 45.

ATS officers said Parmar and Maskar are business partners and ran the lab in Panvel at which they produced mephedrone.

The two business partners hired Abdul and Irfan to deliver mephedrone to their distributors in Mumbai and neighbouring districts.

Assistant commissioner of police Shripad Kale got a tip-off about drugs being delivered to Mumbai and laid a trap near a bus stop at Bhandup pumping station on the eastern express highway on Monday.

Abdul and Irfan were arrested with 9kg of mephedrone and confessed that they were on their way to Bandra to deliver the drugs to Suleman.

Suleman, who is a drug distributor, sold small quantities to other drug peddlers across the western suburbs, said an ATS officer.

“During the inquiry, police nabbed Suleman and later their connection to Parmar was established. ATS officers raided the lab in Panvel on Tuesday afternoon and found 120-kg MD and ₹1.5 crore. Parmar and Maskar were taken into custody for inquiry,” said Vikram Deshmane, deputy commissioner of police, ATS.

Suleman, Abdul, and Irfan were produced in court on Tuesday and remanded in police custody till September 16. Parmar and Maskar will be produced in court today, added Deshmane.