Over a year after a major drug operation was unearthed by the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad (ATS), the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators Act (SAFEMA) authority has ordered the freezing of property worth ₹1.55 crore belonging to 13 arrested accused that was revealed during the probe. Police had seized the property ranging from land, ornaments and vehicles, which has now been frozen after an order was issued by SAFEMA authorities on the basis of the ATS probe.
In the drug haul, the Vikhroli unit of the ATS had recovered 146.143 kilograms of mephedrone, alias MD, alias Meow Meow, worth Rs 58.55 crore. During the probe, the police had arrested 13 people in connection with the case, who were booked under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
Further probe into the case revealed that the accused have acquired properties from the income attributable to the sale/production of the contraband. Police learned about a plot in MIDC Shirala in Sangli in the name of one Sardar Patil, a flat at Panvel in Raigad valued at ₹35.10 lakh, a plot in Panvel worth ₹12.72 lakh and another piece of land valued at ₹32.93 lakh in the name of Kaisuddin Siddiqui, read an ATS statement.
Police also seized gold and silver ornaments worth ₹41.32 lakh, seven foreign-made wrist watches and foreign currency from accused Mohammed Tanvir Abdul Aziz Paryani, who is suspected to have links with the fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim. Based on these findings, the ATS approached SAFEMA authority, which issued the freezing order on the basis of the ATS probe.
