In Mumbai: ₹19-crore Alprazolam and other drugs seized from Ambernath factory

Thane anti narcotics cell seized 140kg of Alprazolam worth Rs19 crore, after raiding a factory in Ambernath on Saturday. Four people were arrested.

Thane anti narcotics cell seized 140kg of Alprazolam worth Rs19 crore, after raiding a factory in Ambernath on Saturday. Four people were arrested.

The accused in the Alprazolam haul at the Thane commissioner’s office on Monday, after their arrest on Sunday. (Praful Gangurde/HT)

Police said 754kg drugs were seized in total, samples of which have been sent to the forensic laboratory as cops are unsure about their nature. The company had a licence to produce 27 kinds of drug but produced other controlled substances too.

Cops laid a trap and arrested Amit Godbole, 32, and Lovkush Gupta,26, on Friday from the Talao Pali area with 6kg of Alprazolam worth Rs15 lakh, that they planned to sell. They spilled out the information on the factory and a raid was carried out. The other accused, Anil Rajbhar,25, and Baswaraj Bhandari, 27, were arrested on Sunday.

The factory, Centaur Pharmaceuticals Pvt Ltd, at Moriwali village in Ambernath has 250 employees. It has branches in Goa and Pune and the police probing international link ups too as the company is based in America.

Six teams raided the factory.

Police sub inspector, Amol Walzade from Thane anti narcotics cell, said,” We found out about the factory from the initial arrests and rushed to the spot. During our search operation, we found a cavity near the steam pipe in a corner of the factory, dug it up and found 65 drums of Alprazolam in it.”

Walzade further added, “Amit owns a pharma agency in Ambernath while Lovkush is cylinder supplier. The other two are factory employees.”

Deputy commissioner of police, Thane, Parag Manere, said, “Alprazolam treats anxiety disorder. We are in the process of arresting more half a dozen people as it seems to be a big racket. We have detained a few. The factory have been seized. ”

Thane police commissioner Param Bir Singh said, “We have also found that the company was involved in producing more than 55 types drugs, of which they had permission for 27. We are investigating everything.”

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