Nesco concert drug overdose case: Police recover 933 ecstasy pills dumped in bushes by drug supplier

Mumbai police recovered 933 ecstasy tablets linked to a drug case involving a concert where two students died. Six arrests made, including the main accused.

MUMBAI: Six days after the arrest of alleged drug supplier Ayush Sahitya, 24, while he was fleeing to Goa, the police on Thursday recovered 933 ecstasy tablets that had been dumped in bushes at Khalapur in Raigad district.

Nesco concert drug overdose case: Police recover 933 ecstasy pills dumped in bushes by drug supplier

Sahitya is a prime accused in the case involving the supply of drugs at a techno music concert held at the Nesco Exhibition Centre in Goregaon on April 11, where two MBA students died and several others were affected following a suspected overdose.

Ecstasy, also known as MDMA or ‘Molly’, is an illegal synthetic drug that acts as both a stimulant and a hallucinogen and is commonly associated with club and rave settings.

According to the Vanrai police, at least 11 people have been arrested so far, including Sahitya, concert organisers, bouncers and drug peddlers. One suspect is believed to have fled the country, and efforts are underway to trace him.

Deputy commissioner of police (Zone XII) Mahesh Chimate said Sahitya was arrested on Saturday from the Poladpur area while travelling to Goa. “When he noticed police checking vehicles on the route, he stopped his car and threw the ecstasy tablets into roadside bushes,” Chimate said.

During interrogation, Sahitya allegedly confessed to disposing of the contraband, which was subsequently recovered by a police team.

Investigators said the accused had bribed security guards and bouncers at the exhibition centre to gain entry without valid tickets and later sold the tablets to attendees for ₹1,500 to ₹2,000 each.

Police on Wednesday also arrested Jiya Jacob from Mira Road. Officials said she was in close contact with a drug peddler suspected to have fled the country and had financial transactions with other accused, leading to her arrest.

Interrogation has revealed that the accused had established links with security personnel at the venue. At least two suppliers allegedly entered the “999999999” music concert without tickets after paying ₹1,000 each to guards and bouncers, a police officer said.

Two MBA students, a man and a woman, died on April 12 after allegedly consuming alcohol and ecstasy pills at the concert the previous night. A third student from the same group of 20 to 22 attendees is currently undergoing treatment at Bombay Hospital.