Thane Crime Branch Busts ₹30 Lakh Racket Smuggling Foreign Liquor from Goa

In a major crackdown, Thane Crime Branch (Unit 1) busted a sophisticated racket involving illegal transportation and sale of foreign liquor smuggled from Goa to Maharashtra. Acting on a tip-off, police intercepted a Mahindra Bolero pickup in Dombivli (East) and uncovered a massive stash of 18,290 bottles of foreign liquor worth ₹30 lakh. The accused had removed original labels and affixed fake ones bearing identical batch numbers, manufacturing and expiry dates to facilitate illegal sales in Maharashtra’s cities.

The operation was launched on the night of June 4, following credible intelligence about individuals transporting low-cost foreign liquor from Goa through secret routes to Sudamwadi, Dombivli (East). Police laid a trap near Nerurkar Road and intercepted a suspicious vehicle (MH-05-FJ-7884), driven by Shrikant Tokade, who failed to produce any documents related to the liquor.

Upon further questioning, Tokade led officials to a nearby dilapidated house in Pandurang Nivas chawl, where police discovered boxes containing various brands of foreign liquor bottles.  Fake labels, mini printers, cartridges, and heat guns used for forging product details were also recovered. The entire seizure—including equipment, liquor, and the transport vehicle—is valued at approximately ₹30 lakh.

The raid continued until the morning of June 5, and the following individuals were arrested:

• Shrikant Bhagirath Tokade (27), driver from Titwala,

• Vakil Nivas Mandal (23), cleaner from Kalyan,

• Swi Santosh Tiwari (30), resident of Sudamwadi, Dombivli East,

• Sanjit Hajari Yadav (19), resident of Sudamwadi, Dombivli East.

The accused have been booked under BNS sections 318(4), 336(2)(3), 338, 340(2), 3(5) and Maharashtra Prohibition Act sections 65(A)(E). All four were arrested at 8:30 PM on June 4 and have been remanded to police custody till June 9.

Police believe Tokade and Mandal were handling transportation, while Tiwari and Yadav were in charge of storage and repackaging at the Dombivli site. Further investigation is ongoing by Thane Crime Branch Unit 1 under the guidance of Additional CP Vinayak Deshmukh, DCP Amar Singh Jadhav, and ACP Shekhar Bagde. The successful operation was executed by Senior Police Inspector Sachin Gaikwad and his team.