Nesco concert drug deaths: Two peddlers remanded, cops seek to interrogate them with main supplier

Two accused in the Nesco concert drug case are remanded to police custody as investigations reveal financial links to a suspected drug kingpin.

MUMBAI: In a recent development in the Nesco techno concert drug case that left two MBA students dead of an alleged overdose, a magistrate court on Monday remanded two accused peddlers, 22-year-old college student Vineet Gerelani and 24-year-old Ayush Sahitya, to police custody.

Nesco concert drug deaths: Two peddlers remanded, cops seek to interrogate them with main supplier

The Vanrai police in Goregaon East sought custody after the duo had earlier been sent to judicial custody by the Borivali magistrate court. Investigators plan to confront them with the alleged kingpin, 44-year-old Mahesh Khemlani alias Mark, a Hong Kong-based businessman, who was arrested at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on May 2 upon his return from Thailand.

Police said Khemlani has been evasive during questioning, prompting the need for a face-to-face interrogation to unravel financial links between him, his live-in partner Jiya Jacob, an artist, and the two accused.

Investigations into money trails have revealed multiple transactions routed via QR code payments. Construction businessman Anand Patel allegedly transferred ₹64,000, Vineet Gerelani ₹22,500, Shubh Agarwal ₹1,66,400, and Ayush Sahitya ₹1,84,600. Police also found that Khemlani operated Jacob’s Axis Bank account for suspected drug-related transactions.

Jacob, a Mira Road East resident, has reportedly been in a live-in relationship with Khemlani for four years, though the two have known each other for over a decade. Her questioning led investigators to Khemlani’s alleged role in the racket.

Produced before a Metropolitan Magistrate holiday court on Friday, Khemlani was remanded to police custody till May 6. Officials said he runs an import-export business in Hong Kong and are probing whether it was used as a front to traffic drugs into India and other countries.

Police are also preparing to search Khemlani’s residence and suspect that his custodial interrogation could expose a wider international narcotics network. Gerelani and Sahitya, believed to be close aides aware of Khemlani’s overseas links, are expected to play a crucial role in tracing the supply chain and identifying other members of the syndicate.