Thane police hand over kingpin of ₹2,000-cr drug haul to Gujarat | Mumbai news - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

Thane police hand over kingpin of 2,000-cr drug haul to Gujarat

Hindustan Times | By, Thane
Jun 06, 2017 06:47 PM IST

The Thane police on Saturday handed over the custody of Kishoresingh Bhavsingh Rathod, 42, the prime accused in the Rs2,000-crore drug haul case, to the Gujarat police.

This occurred after a court in Gujarat sent a notice to the Thane police asking for his custody.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

Rathod, son of a Gujarat MLA, was arrested in January and was in the custody of the Thane police. Officials from the Gujarat police said that the city police were supposed to give them Rathod’s custody after they were done questioning and filing a chargesheet against him.

“We had told the Thane police that they need to handover Rathod to us once they finished interrogating him and filed the chargesheet. It had been two months since the police completed investigating him but they did not give us his custody. So we had to approach a court,” said an officer from the Gujarat police who did not wish to be named.

He added, “After they received the court’s notice, they contacted us on Friday and said that they would hand Rathod over to us on Saturday.” The alleged kingpin is currently lodged in Gujarat’s Sabarmati jail.

A police officer from Thane commissionerate said, “We handed Rathod over to the Gujarat police but the investigation is still underway. We have gathered a lot of information against him. Also, since he is the prime accused, he is linked to several others accused in the case. While he has confessed to his role in the crime we are on the look out for others who are on the run.”

The officer added, “During investigation, we also found out that he was tipped off about the raid at The Solapur factory and so he went absconding. Rathod also told us how ‘bhabhi’ actor Mamta Kulkarni and her husband Vicky Goswami were involved in the drug trade. He claimed that he was present at several meetings held by the couple outside India.

The Thane police also approached a court and issued a transfer order against Rathod so that they can claim his custody if needed during investigation.

On April 13, 2016, the police arrested two people with ephedrine worth Rs12 lakh and later seized drugs worth Rs2,000 crore at a Avon Pharma Life Sciences Private Limited factory in Solapur. So far, 14 people have been arrested and five accused including Kulkarni are on the run.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    author-default-90x90

    Arvind is a correspondent from Thane who covers crime beat and has an experience of four years in the field. Apart from crime he is also a volunteer of Wildlife Crime Control bureau and reports on environment and rescue operations in the city.

SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On