Mumbai: Drug trafficker Vicky Goswami has been arrested in Kenya while his wife and former Bollywood actress Mamta Kulkarni has been detained in a joint operation carried out by the Drug Enforcement Agency of the US and the local Mombasa police.
The arrest was made on November 9 after a four month long operation by the DEA, which caught Goswami (53) along with three other drug traffickers following the seizure of 98 kg of heroin.
The drug, packed in 98 packets, was seized on November 7. The DEA began the operation following rampant drug smuggling from Kenya to US.
Besides Goswami, those arrested include BaktashAkasha Abdalla, his brother Ibrahim and one Gulam Hussein. Baktash and Ibrahim are big time local drug traffickers while Hussein is a Pakistani national. Goswami and Baktash were arrested on November 9 whereas the two others were arrested on November 7.
Sources in the Mumbai police who are monitoring the development said that Kulkarni was detained as the DEA and the Mombasa police are still to establish her direct involvement in drug trafficking. The DEA conducted some sting operations during which they found Kulkarni present with Goswami. She was with Goswami when the police came to arrest him.
The Mumbai police are keeping a close watch on the development: they believe that in case Kulkarni is deported to India they will be able to get vital information about Goswami’s drug cartel and properties in India and other countries.
Goswami, alias Vijaygiri Anandgiri, originally hails from Ahmedabad and was earlier arrested by the Dubai police in 1997 for trafficking 11.5 tonnes of Mandrax. He was sentenced to life imprisonment but was released on November 15, 2012, on grounds of model conduct.
While he was in prison, Goswami converted to Islam and married Kulkarni who was managing his real estate business. She had also worked hard for Goswami’s release from Dubai prison. After his release, Goswami shifted to Nairobi, Kenya, along with Kulkarni who had changed her name to Mamta Khan.
When asked, Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime, Sadanand Date, messaged, “No reliable information is available.”
