The Anti Narcotics Cell and the Central unit of the Navi Mumbai Crime Branch arrested four people with gutkha worth ₹35.53 lakh in Mahape MIDC area on Friday. The accused have been identified as Priyavrat Abhaykumar Das (29), Munna Shrijanardhan Yadav (28), Jitendra Karthikchandra Das (26), and Akheya Budhadev Khonda (22).
Acting on a tip-off, the police intercepted three trucks carrying the contraband. “The main accused, who had sent the consignment, is yet to be arrested because he has tested positive for COVID-19 and has been admitted to hospital. He was managing the operations from the hospital. We are investigating the source of the contraband and who was supposed to receive such a large quantity of gutkha,” senior police inspector Nivrutti Kolhatkar from the Central unit said.
The police have received information that a man based in Gujarat had supplied the gutkha to the accused. The accused have been charged under relevant sections of the Food Safety and Standards Act and the Indian Penal Code. They have been remanded in police custody till October 12.
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