Bollywood drugs case: NCB arrests two key drug suppliers, seizes drugs, cash worth ₹2.63 crore

A total of 28 people have been arrested so far in the drugs case related to actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death by NCB officials.

In a major crackdown on the drug syndicate supplying narcotics to those associated with Bollywood, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) arrested two key drug suppliers and seized drugs worth nearly ₹2.63 crore during an operation that started on late Tuesday night and continued till Wednesday morning. A total of 28 people have been arrested so far in the drugs case related to actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death by NCB officials.

NCB team recovered 5 kg of Malana Cream charas (hashish), small quantities of opium and ecstasy pills and cash worth ₹1,351,500. (HT)

Based on specific inputs, a team of NCB officials led by zonal director Sameer Wankhede on Tuesday night arrested Jitendra Jain alias Jeet alias Rigel Mahakal from Andheri (West). He was wanted in the case since September as a previous arrested accused has named him in his statement.

During interrogation, Mahakal revealed information about another suspect. Following this, the NCB team headed by Wankhede on Wednesday morning raided a house in Millat Nagar, Oshiwara and caught Mohammad Azam Jumman Shaikh. Upon searching his house, the team recovered 5 kg of Malana Cream charas (hashish), small quantities of opium and ecstasy pills and cash worth ₹1,351,500.

“Probe has revealed that Shaikh used to order drugs from Himachal Pradesh and then he would sell it to peddlers like Mahakal. Mahakal used to supply the drugs to Anuj Keshwani, who was earlier arrested by NCB. Keshwani in turn used to supply it to Kaizan Ibrahim who would further sell it to Dipesh Sawant, Rajput’s house help,” said NCB officials.

The official added, “Shaikh would go to Himachal Pradesh and place order for Malana Cream and return to city. Members of Himachal based drug suppliers would come to Mumbai for delivery of the drugs.”

“We are digging up the financial aspect and would check if the house owned by Shaikh was bought from the money earned from the drugs business,” the officer added. Shaikh has been previously arrested by local police for assaulting his wife.

NCB officials said Malana Cream, grown only in Malana Region of Himachal Pradesh, is the most desirable charas in the world. Its international market price ranges from ₹40-50 lakh per kg.

In September, based on the interrogation of Ibrahim, NCB had raided Keshwani’s Khar residence and seized 590 grams of hashish, 0.64 gram of LSD sheets, 304 grams of marijuana including imported marijuana joints and capsules and ₹185,200 and 5,000 Indonesian currency. Ibrahim was among the peddlers who supplied marijuana to Rajput, said NCB officials.

Wankhede also said, “This is the biggest seizure in the drugs case and we have unearthed the entire chain. He used to supply drugs to Mahakal and also to other drug peddlers who move around in the Bollywood industry. We are checking which peddlers are in contact of Shaikh.”

NCB, which has been investigating the drug angle into Rajput’s death, has till now arrested 28 people including Bollywood celebs including comedienne Bharti Singh, her husband Haarsh Limbachiyaa, brother of Arjun Rampal’s partner Agisilaos Demetriades.

2 arrested with marijuana

Dindoshi police arrested two men for alleged possession of 57 kgs of marijuana worth ₹5.70 lakh. The police said the arrested accused were planning to sell the drugs in Mumbai.

According to police officers, they received a tip-off on Tuesday that two men had been stocking marijuana in a garage in Malad (East). On Tuesday at 9pm, the officers raided a garage on General AK Vaidya Marg and recovered 57 kgs of marijuana stored in bags. The police arrested Tabarak Hamid Sayyed, 22, and Mushtafizur Shaikh, 23, under various sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

The officers investigating the case said both the arrested are residents of Goregaon. “We have arrested the two and are investigating the source of these drugs. We are also trying to find out whether the two are connected to a drug cartel or are in touch with other suppliers and whether they are only involved in peddling of marijuana or other drugs,” said Dr D Swami, deputy commissioner of police (zone 12).