Thane: A 25-year-old mobile repairman from Mumbra, who allegedly used his technical profession as a front to run a lucrative narcotics racket, was arrested after police seized 750 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup from his residence.The accused, identified as Arshad Abdul Razzak Shaikh, was nabbed during a midnight raid at his residence in the Khardi Road area. Police recovered the massive stockpile of cough syrup, along with high-end gadgets and cash, collectively valued at over Rs 1.8 lakh. Investigators revealed that Shaikh operated a mobile repairing business, which officials believe served as a perfect cover to interact with a wide network of people without raising suspicion.
“The accused was using his residence at Manna Heights Building to stockpile the syrup, which is frequently abused by addicts as a substitute for hard drugs,” said an officer from the Shil Daighar police station. “The mobile repair business allowed him to maintain a steady flow of ‘customers’ under the guise of providing technical services.” The operation was a joint effort between the Thane Crime Branch (Unit-1) and the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC). Shaikh has been booked under stringent sections of the NDPS Act (1985) and the Drugs and Cosmetics Act (1940). Specifically, he faces charges under Section 22(c) of the NDPS Act, which pertains to the possession of commercial quantities of psychotropic substances—a charge that carries heavy jail time. The police are now widening their probe to trace the source of the “Laborate Pharmaceuticals” manufactured bottles, as the batch numbers on the seized boxes were found to be defaced.
