Thane police officials seized 20 tonnes of ephedrine in a record raid this month. Investigation reports suggest that the former Bollywood actress Mamta Kulkarni might be a vital cog in the international drug ring that tried to sneak in the contraband.
The investigators discovered on Wednesday that Kenya-based Vicky Goswami (Mamta’s husband) was the top dog in the drug operation.
In 1997, Vicky was arrested for drug trafficking in Dubai and served 15 years in prison. He later moved with Mamta to the Kenyan capital Nairobi where he currently faces fresh charges. He is also on USA and India’s wanted list for drug offences.
“This is an international racket and Vicky Goswami is the main link to it. As for Mamta Kulkarni, we are probing her role,” said Thane police commissioner Parambir Singh to the Times of India (TOI), referring to the ephedrine haul.
According to TOI reports, Vicky was named as the prime suspect after the police received information about his operations from the United States’ Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) on Tuesday.
According to TOI, senior Thane officers did not divulge details about Mamta’s role in her husband’s drug syndicate. But sources in the police said Mamta, who is believed to be in Kenya currently, is the face of the ring.
Allegedly, Mamta meets clients and closes business deals on behalf of her husband as he cannot leave Kenya because of the Interpol lookout notice.
According to TOI, the crime branch on Tuesday arrested Punit Shringi. He was allegedly the main link between Vicky and the drug cartels in Mumbai and Thane. Shringi reportedly revealed that Manoj Jain, the director of a reputed firm, was also involved and had met Vicky several times in Kenya.
20 tonnes of ephedrine was seized from a Solapur factory earlier this month. According to the Thane police, gangs in India, Poland and other European countries had planned to send the consignment to eastern Europe from Mumbai via Gujarat.
