Breaking Bad, Mumbai edition: Rs 50-cr MD factory busted inside 1 BHK flat, cops interrogating 3

Kandivali unit of Anti-Narcotics Cell unearthed mephedrone manufacturing unit operating from a one-bedroom Mumbai apartment. A pistol and 19 cartridges also seized.

Three accused picked up for questioning by the Kandivali unit of the Anti-Narcotics Cell | By special arrangement

New Delhi: A one-bedroom flat was all they needed to allegedly cook mephedrone (MD) worth crores in south Mumbai’s Agripada.

Following a tip-off, the Kandivali unit of the Anti-Narcotics Cell unearthed a laboratory with narcotics production equipment worth Rs 50 crore, seized over 14 kg of manufactured and liquid MD and picked up three persons, including a Bangladeshi woman, for questioning.

The police identified the accused as Shoiab Shaukat alias Mansur, Sufiyan Mansur and Mamuni Sarkar, and are interrogating them about the entire racket.

“Out of the 14 kg of narcotics, over 8 kg is liquid MD and over 6 kg is MD powder,” a senior official told The Print. He added that the prime accused is Shoaib, who has a history of robbery, while Sarkar is his alleged partner.

Kandivali unit of the Anti-Narcotics Cell with MD manufacturing equipment worth Rs 50 crore seized from a south Mumbai flat | By special arrangement

“We recovered chemicals, raw material and equipment used for manufacturing the synthetic drug; a pistol and 19 cartridges were also seized,” said the official.

The police have subsequently booked them under sections 22 and 29 of the NDPS Act 1985, and section 25 of the Indian Arms Act 1959.

The anti-narcotics cell also seized a pistol and 19 cartridges | By special arrangement

“Through human intelligence, we learnt that Shaoib was preparing the drug on receiving instructions over calls, so we are analysing his call records to identify the mastermind. We have also begun our investigation to know why they procured the firearms and if they used them for any crime,” said the official.

(Edited by Viny Mishra)