Man held in Surat with mephedrone worth 35L

Surat: City police's special operations group (SOG) confiscated Rs 35 lakh worth of mephedrone, commonly called ‘MD', and apprehended an individual who allegedly procured the banned drug from a supplier in Mumbai to peddle in Surat.
Asif Shaikh allegedly moved from Mumbai to Limbayat in Surat to establish a drug peddling operation. Shaikh had acquired the drug with the intention of distributing it in areas such as Vesu, Althan, Adajan and City Light during the ongoing festive season.
Acting on a tip-off, SOG police intercepted Shaikh while he was travelling from the Star Bazar area towards LP Savani School in Adajan. Police allegedly found 352g of MD in his possession. They also recovered Rs 89,900 in cash.
During his interrogation, Shaikh confessed to being unemployed and resorting to drug peddling as a means of livelihood. He had established contact with a Mumbai-based supplier, Yogesh Hingale, who supplied him with the drug. Shaikh had recently travelled to Mumbai to collect the contraband and bring it to Surat.
"We have arrested and booked Shaikh under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. He has been transporting MD from Mumbai by train. He would distribute approximately 500g of MD every week. The MD we confiscated from him is of high purity. He would dilute it before selling it to customers. We have seized his phone and are investigating who bought MD from him. We suspect many people have used MD, as he has been involved in its distribution for 10 months," an SOG official said.