Narcotics worth Rs 500 cr seized in Gujarat, two detained

Ahmedabad, Oct 23 (IANS) Two men, including a chemical engineer, were detained and narcotics worth Rs 500 crore seized during a joint operation of the Ahmedabad Crime Branch and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), said officials on Monday here.

The two were detained on Sunday. The officials said the chemical engineer is based in Surat but was caught from Maharashtra's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.

Their illegal enterprise is believed to have been a primary source for the drug supply that fuelled exclusive rave parties across India's major cities, the officials said. 

Chaitanya Mandlik, DCP Crime Branch of Gujarat Police, said the joint operation was spurred by intelligence that indicated a Surat resident was orchestrating this drug syndicate. The ensuing search by DRI in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar culminated in further discoveries -- approximately 23kg of cocaine, 2.9 kg of Mephedrone, and cash amounting to Rs 30 lakh. The total black-market value of this significant narcotics and raw material bust is estimated at over Rs 500 crore.

The officials said Jitesh Hinhoria, with a background in chemical engineering and previous employment in the pharma industry, was caught holding an alarming 23,000 litres of chemicals intended for the illicit manufacturing of potent drugs such as ketamine, mephedrone, and cocaine.

Hinhoria has been an active player in the narcotics trade for roughly 18 months, operating clandestinely first from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and now from Surat. His distribution network spanned Mumbai, Ratlam, Indore, Delhi, Chennai, and Surat.

Investigations led officials to Mahalakshmi Industries in Paithan, where the illicit production of the aforementioned substances was suspected to take place. Their probe yielded a confiscation of 4.5 kg of Mephedrone, 4.3 kg of Ketamine, and a concoction of 9.3 kg Mephedrone from the facility.