Acting on a tip-off, Thane Crime Branch (Wagle Unit 5) apprehended a man transporting illegally harvested ‘Khair’ timber in the early hours of June 17. The accused, identified as Anilkumar Ramchandra Gupta (54), a truck driver from Dhule, was caught near Nitin Junction while driving a truck (GJ 15 YY 5652) carrying 10.5 tonnes of carved Khairwood logs valued at ₹31.72 lakh. The truck itself, worth ₹10 lakh, was also seized, taking the total value of seized goods to ₹41,75,500.
The operation was led by API Sharad Patil, who had received confidential information about the illegal timber transport scheduled around 1 AM via Majiwada. A team was deployed on the route, resulting in Gupta's arrest and the seizure of the contraband. A case was registered at Wagle Estate Police Station under BNS Sections 303(2) and 3(5), along with Indian Forest Act 1927 Sections 41(B), 42, and 52(B).
The investigation is ongoing under the leadership of API Sharad Yuvraj Patil. The successful operation was conducted under the guidance of DCP (Crime) Amarsingh Jadhav and ACP Shekhar Bagde, along with Senior PI Salil Bhosale.