MBBV cops seize heroin worth Rs 8.04 cr in Vasai; main accused says contraband came from Pak

Palghar, Sep 29 (PTI) The Mira Bhayander Vasai Virar (MBVV) police have seized heroin worth Rs 8.04 crore that had been brought to Maharashtra's Palghar district from Pakistan, a senior official said on Monday.

On September 11, Rajasthan residents Samundarsingh Rupsingh Devda (49), Yuvrajsingh Bhavanisingh Rathod (28) and Taktasinh Karansingh Rajput (38) were held from Fatherwadi in Vasai East, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime) Madan Ballal said.

"We seized 2.11 kilograms of heroin worth Rs 8.04 crore, along with a Swift car and mobile phones. A case under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act was registered at the time at Waliv police station. Their questioning led us to Harisingh Tejsingh Rawloti Bhati (55), a resident of Sattu village in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer on the India-Pakistan border," he said.

"On September 25, our team traced and arrested Bhati from Mandar in Rajasthan. He has confessed the heroin seized in Vasai was smuggled from Pakistan. This crackdown has exposed an international narcotics racket using cross-border routes to smuggle drugs into India," Ballal added.

Further probe into the peddling network is underway to trace additional conduits and nab collaborators who may be part of the Pakistan-based supply chain, the ACP said. PTI COR BNM