Pune Police told the court on Wednesday that they have CCTV footage of how the accused drug dealer Lalit Patil’s brother Bhushan Patil and his associate Abhishekh Balkawade supplied drugs to another arrested accused Subhash Mandal in order to fulfil the deal.
On Tuesday, in a coordinated operation, the Pune Police and the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) arrested Bhushan and Balkawade.
A day after the arrest of Bhushan and Balkawade, Pune city police produced them in Pune court, which granted them police custody till October 16.
While seeking police custody, the prosecution said, that during the interrogation of Mandal, police came to know that Lalit along with Bhushan and Balkawade were running a mephedrone (MD) production unit in Nashik and 1.71 kg of MD recovered from Mandal was produced in that same factory.
The prosecution said that in a recent action by Mumbai police on a drug manufacturing unit in MIDC in Shinde village in Nashik district, police seized 150 kg of MD drugs and raw material from the unit.
“We have CCTV footage of how Bhushan and Blakawade handed over drug samples to Mandal before his arrest. This indicates how they all are running drug racket,” said Ramnath Pokle, additional commissioner of police (crime).
{{/usCountry}}“We have CCTV footage of how Bhushan and Blakawade handed over drug samples to Mandal before his arrest. This indicates how they all are running drug racket,” said Ramnath Pokle, additional commissioner of police (crime).
{{/usCountry}}The investigators said that during the investigation it was found that Lalit along with Bhushan and Blakawade illegally produced MD drugs and sold them at various locations.
Police also suspect that the accused have some interstate and international connections related to drugs. But exact details related to it will come into light only after a detailed investigation.
Police also suspect that the accused were running more such illegal drug production units from various parts of the state. As per police, Bhushan has expertise in chemical formation and he was the mastermind of the mephedrone production unit in Nashik.
Amol Zende, deputy commissioner of police (crime), said, “During the technical analysis we came to know about Bhushan’s movement accordingly which with the help of STF Uttar Pradesh we arrested the duo.’’
Patil was accused of indulging in illicit narcotics sale and booked on September 30 following a raid by the anti-narcotics cell in which Patil’s aide, Subhash Janaki Mandal, 29, was arrested for possessing 1.71 kg and 53 milligrams of mephedrone estimated to be worth ₹2.14 crore.
Police said Abhishekh alias German is Lalit’s close associate. The phone seized by Pune city police from Lalit detected calls by the name of German.
Police suspect Bhushan and German might have helped Lalit to escape from the Sassoon Hospital. However, police said after detailed interrogation more names will come forward who helped Lalit for his escape from Sassoon Hospital.