Karjat farmhouse leased for ‘goat farming' turns out to be MD factory
MUMBAI: The RCF police on Monday busted a drug manufacturing factory at a farmhouse in Karjat, which was leased by at least four people on the pretext of goat farming, officers said.
Following a tip-off, the police raided the farmhouse and seized 5.5 kg of mephedrone (MD), along with raw material worth ₹12 crore. They also arrested a man, identified as Arkam Memon, who was allegedly involved in manufacturing the drugs.
Memon and three of his associates had allegedly rented the farmhouse two months ago for ₹50,000 per month, telling the owner they were goat farmers. The four men had earlier rented another farmhouse in the area for a similar purpose, said a police officer.
Following his arrest on Monday, Memon was produced in court and remanded in police custody till June 2, said the officer. The police have launched a search for his three associates.
According to the police, Memon is part of a syndicate involved in supplying mephedrone, a synthetic stimulant drug, in Mumbai. The police had earlier arrested five alleged members of the syndicate—Rehan Shaikh, Shiva Gupta, Rajan Subramanyam, Shahnawaz Chinoy, and Sonu Pathan. More than 12 kg of the drug, worth ₹25 crore, have been seized so far in the case, said deputy commissioner of police Navnath Dhavale.
The racket was unearthed in April, when a team from the RCF police station spotted Shaikh, a suspected drug peddler, while patrolling the Chembur area. The police allegedly found 45 grams of mephedrone, worth ₹4.5 lakh, in his possession. During his interrogation, Shaikh allegedly revealed the name of another accused from whom he used to buy mephedrone and then sell it to his clients in the Chembur area.
After investigating further, the police nabbed three more drug peddlers—Shiva Gupta, Rajan Subramanyam and Shahnawaz Chinoy—in the first week of May. During their interrogation, they allegedly revealed the name of Sonu Pathan, a Dongri resident who was a wholesaler of mephedrone. On May 18, the police arrested Pathan from his home, where they allegedly found 6.6 kg of mephedrone worth ₹13 crore.
The arrests so far have been made under sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The police are trying to nab other members of the syndicate, said the officer quoted earlier.
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