E-Paper
10 held with cocaine worth ₹42.85 lakh in Panchgani crackdown
Police checks at Panchgani lead to cocaine haul on Thursday and 10 persons were detained near Ghatjai temple
Pune: With New Year’s Eve celebrations coming up and security on high alert in Panchgani, police have intensified checks in the popular hill station, leading to a big narcotics haul for which the local crime branch on Thursday detained 10 persons near the Ghatjai temple. The accused were nabbed while allegedly transporting a cocaine-like substance. Police seized drugs valued at around ₹5 lakh along with mobile phones and luxury cars, taking the total value of the seized material to ₹42.85 lakh.
The operation was carried out on the heels of a raid at Savari in Satara district, raising concerns among investigators about the possible emergence of a drug distribution network in the region. Police officers said the suspects had travelled from Mumbai to Panchgani and were intercepted following a specific tip-off.
Those detained have been identified as Mohammad Naved Salim Parmar (32), Sohel Harshad Khan (35), Mohammad O.S. Rizwan Ansari (32), Wasil Hamid Khan (31), Mohammad Sahil Ansari (30), Zeeshan Irfan Shaikh (31), Saif Ali Qureshi (31), Mohammad Ubaid Siddiqui (27), Ali Ajgar Sadiq (30) and Rahid Mukhtar Shaikh, all residents of Mumbai.
According to the police, Parmar allegedly facilitated the trip of the other nine accused to Panchgani. Investigators said Parmar has multiple criminal cases registered against him. Police are now probing whether the seized substance was intended for personal consumption or for sale.
Assistant police inspector Dilip Pawar of Panchgani police station said the team acted on credible information that a suspect carrying narcotics would arrive near the Ghatjai temple. Further investigation is underway to trace the source of the drugs and possible links to a larger network.
