Two held with 130 g mephedrone in Nagpur's Mahal; police name six more suspects

Nagpur: The anti-narcotics team of the police arrested two accused in a raid on Killa Mahal in the early hours of Saturday, exposing a supply of MD in the densely populated Mahal area in the heart of the city. A total of 130 grams of MD was recovered from them.

Police seized goods worth Rs 5.10 lakh in all, including the consignment of drugs, a two-wheeler, mobile phones, an electronic weighing scale and packing material. The names of six other suspects have emerged in the case, giving the probe into the drug supply network a new turn.

The team acted in the Kotwali police station area between 3.50 am and 6.40 am, in front of Suresh Bagal's house behind Shishu Vikas School. Police arrested Shaikh Mohsin Abdul Ghafoor (28) of Killa Mahal and Shaikh Saqib Shaikh Asif (23) of Tulsibagh, Mahal.

A search of the two yielded 130 grams of MD powder, valued at Rs 3.90 lakh. Police also seized a Bergman moped worth Rs 90,000 used in the trafficking, two mobile phones worth Rs 30,000, an electronic weighing scale and zip-lock pouches kept for packing the drugs.

Only two arrests have been made, but the probe has widened to six other suspects. They are Tarbez Alam alias Tipu alias Angrez, Rahil Salam Shaikh, Naushad Imran Malik, Irfan, Shaikh Ikram Shaikh Muzaffar and Amin. Police are searching for them.

The key aspects of the probe now are to identify the source of the MD supply and its buyers in the city. Police are trying to establish who delivered the consignment to the arrested men and how many people are involved in distribution. More links in the network are likely to emerge once the roles of the six other suspects become clear.

The Mahal area has figured in discussions on MD trafficking earlier too. Some time ago, shots were fired at a criminal in a gang war over MD trafficking. Even so, police have failed to bring MD trafficking under control.

A case is being registered at Kotwali police station under Sections 8(c), 22(c) and 29 of the NDPS Act. The anti-narcotics team acted under the guidance of Police Inspector Bharat Kshirsagar.