Gujarat: 2.5 tonnes of cannabis-laced tablets worth Rs 12.67 crore seized; two arrested

Valsad (Gujarat): The police of Valsad district, Gujarat, have seized 2,535.1 kg of intoxicating tablets containing cannabis, valued at Rs 12.67 crore, and arrested two men during raids at Vapi and Dadra, while two other alleged members of the supply network remain wanted.

The seizures were made by the district police’s Anti-Narcotics Wing (ANW) and Special Operation Group (SOG) as part of an investigation into the alleged sale of narcotic substances.

Police said the tablets were intended for sale and that the two arrested men had allegedly acted together with other accused.

During the first raid, police searched the house of Mohammad Amin Mohammad Basu Khan, 46, in Raza Gali, Ahmednagar, in the Chhiri area of Vapi. They seized 387.75 kg of tablets containing cannabis, valued at Rs 1.93 crore.

During the investigation, police allegedly traced the supply of the tablets to Pradip alias Mannu Verma, 28, who runs a business from Shri Sai Complex in Dadra, in the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.

"A subsequent raid at Verma’s shop near the Lavachha border on Tidhara Road in Dadra led to his arrest and the seizure of another 2,147.35 kg of the tablets, valued at Rs 10.73 crore," police said.

The total seizure of 2,535.1 kg of tablets was valued at Rs 12,67,55,000. Police also seized two mobile phones worth Rs 10,000 and two electricity bills, taking the total value of the seized property to Rs 12,67,65,000.

The two other accused named by the police are Anurag Gupta, a resident of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, and Salman Iqbal Siddiqui, a resident of Ghatkopar in Mumbai. Both remain wanted.

Khan, who is originally from Kukurmand village in Chatra district of Jharkhand, was living in Vapi. Verma, originally from Tirua village in Kannauj district of Uttar Pradesh, was residing at Row House No. 4, Shri Sai Complex, opposite Ratan Petrol Pump in Dadra.

The case was registered at Dungra police station in Valsad district following a complaint by Police Sub-Inspector R.P. Dodiya of the Anti-Narcotics Wing, in the presence of Police Inspector H.G. Rabari.

Further investigation has been assigned to Sub-Inspector S.R. Suslade of the Special Operation Group, Valsad, which operates a camp in Vapi.

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