The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) along with the Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) seized 173 kg Hashish worth ₹60 crore smuggled from Pakistan from an Indian fishing boat in the Arabian Sea off Porbander coast and arrested five suspects, officials said on Monday.
The Gujarat ATS squad received information that three individuals from Mumbai and Bheed in Maharashtra, Kailash Vajinath Sanap, Datta Sakharam and Mangesh Tukkaram alias Sahu, were attempting to smuggle narcotics via sea route using an Indian fishing boat.
“Acting on this intel, a joint team of the Indian Coast Guard and Gujarat ATS launched an operation from Porbandar and intercepted the boat on April 28, recovering 173 packets of Hashish (weighing 173 kg). Further investigations revealed their connections with Pakistani drug syndicates,” said a Gujarat ATS official, requesting anonymity.
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The accused had hired a local boat and travelled to a predetermined spot off Pasni, Pakistan, where they received the contraband, the officials further stated. They were apprehended upon their return to Indian waters, and the seized drugs were handed over to the authorities.
{{/usCountry}}The accused had hired a local boat and travelled to a predetermined spot off Pasni, Pakistan, where they received the contraband, the officials further stated. They were apprehended upon their return to Indian waters, and the seized drugs were handed over to the authorities.
{{/usCountry}}“The search of the boat led to the recovery of 173 packets of Hashish from the possession of Mangesh Tukkaram alias Sahu and Haridas Ramnath Kulal alias Puri, hidden in the hold of the boat. Meanwhile, on the basis of technical surveillance, the Gujarat ATS team detained Kailash Vajinath Sanap from Pune, Maharashtra, Datta Sakharam from Dwarka and Ali Asghar Halepotra alias Arif Bidana from Mandhvi, Kutch. The preliminary investigation has revealed that these individuals had been in touch with Pakistan-based drug syndicates,” the official said.
Also Read | Pakistani boat apprehended near Gujarat coast with 60 packets of drugs, six crew members arrested
The latest seizure comes a day after the Indian security arrested 14 Pakistani nationals off the Gujarat coast and seized 86 kg contraband drugs worth around ₹600 crore from their possession.
A couple of days ago, on April 26, the Gujarat ATS and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) conducted a joint operation, arresting 13 individuals across Gujarat and Rajasthan for allegedly possessing mephedrone valued at ₹230 crore.