The Mumbai Police have made a significant breakthrough in the high-profile drug factory case unearthed last month at a farmhouse in Karjat, Raigad district. The RCF police have arrested the alleged kingpin of the racket, Shakeel Memon alias Shakeel ‘Chikna’, who had been absconding since the factory was busted.
Following his arrest, Shakeel was produced in court, which remanded him to police custody till 20th June.
According to investigators, Shakeel Chikna was the mastermind behind the entire operation. Under his directions, isolated bungalows in Karjat were rented and converted into MD drug manufacturing units. The gang allegedly produced around 100 kilograms of MD each month, shifting their base every three months to avoid detection.
Shakeel, a resident of Navi Mumbai, is believed to have operated the network in partnership with his son. The manufactured drugs were then distributed across Mumbai and other cities through an extensive supply chain.
The RCF police had earlier uncovered a major drug syndicate that had turned a farmhouse into a full-fledged MD factory. The farmhouse had been taken on rent from its owner under the pretext of goat farming. Two rooms were rented at ₹1 lakh per month (₹50,000 per room), and a complete drug-making setup was installed.
An officer revealed that the investigation began in March this year when the RCF police seized 45 grams of MD and arrested a man. Further investigation led to the arrest of four more peddlers from Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. The police recovered 6.689 kg of MD, estimated to be worth ₹13.37 crore in the international market.
Based on the inputs from interrogations, the police learned about an active MD factory in Karjat's Kikvi area, inside Sawli Farmhouse. Under the supervision of DCP Navnath Dhawale, a special team raided the location and arrested one person on the spot.
During the raid, police seized 5.525 kg of MD drugs along with raw materials used in its manufacturing. The value of the raw chemicals alone was estimated at ₹1 crore, and officials stated it had the potential to produce 150 kg of MD, which could fetch ₹300 crore globally.
To evade suspicion, the gang had strategically taken the farmhouse under the pretense of raising goats. The smell of goat waste helped mask the strong chemical odour from the drug production, thus fooling locals.
Sources also revealed that the accused had been operating out of this farmhouse for the past three months, producing approximately 25 kg of MD every week. This implies a total output of nearly 300 kg during the period, valued at an estimated ₹600 crore in the international market.
Police are now probing the wider distribution chain, identifying the end destinations of the manufactured drugs, and trying to determine the number of people involved in the syndicate. Investigators are also tracking the money trail to uncover how the illicit profits were laundered or invested.
The case continues to unfold as authorities delve deeper into one of the most sophisticated drug operations in recent times.