Thane: Drug case accused caught after being on the run for three years

Police have arrested a 26yearold man who had been evading arrest for over three years by living under a false identity and frequently changing his location an official said on SundayThe accused Salman Anwar Sheikh a resident of Geeta Nagar in the Mira Road area of Thane district was wanted in connection with a narcotics case registered on July 10 2022 Since then he had been absconding said Senior Police Inspector Rahul Rakh according to the news agency PTIOfficials said Sheikh managed to remain undetected by adopting a fake identity and relocating regularly to avoid capture His arrest marks a significant breakthrough in the ongoing crackdown on drugrelated offences in the regionWhile the case was nearing conclusion in the trial court Sheikh went missing and began to evade arrest He was shuttling between Mira Road Bhayander in Thane and Vasai in neighbouring Palghar district concealing his identity and doing lowprofile jobs to avoid detection he said reported news agency PTIHe worked as a delivery boy and changed his mobile numbers frequently the official saidThe police had received a tip that Sheikh was working as a delivery boyBased on this our team launched a twomonthlong undercover investigation keeping a watch on his possible hideouts and movement patterns Finally we intercepted and arrested him at Cabin Road Bhayander on September 12 Rakh said reported PTIEven as Sheikh was hiding the court continued proceedings against the other accusedOn September 11 the court convicted three coaccused in the case Two were sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment with fines of Rs 50000 each while a third was given 10 years RI and a fine of Rs 1 lakh was imposed on him the police saidDirectorate of Revenue Intelligence seizes narcotics worth around Rs 26 cr arrests 10 persons including mastermindThe Directorate of Revenue Intelligence Kolkata Zonal Unit in its fight against illegal drug trafficking conducted a multipronged operation on September 12In the early hours of the day the officers of DRI conducted searches simultaneously at 3 different locations one in NSCBI Airport and two residential premises in Bijoygarh locality of JadavpurAccording to an official release in the residential location belonging to the mastermind Hydroponic Weed Cannabis and Cocaine of substantial quantity were foundIn the second residential location which was rented and operated by the mastermind a huge quantity of Cannabis was found in a packed and readytodistribute manner Four associates of the mastermind who were employed for the purpose of sale and local distribution of such narcotics in Kolkata were apprehended at this locationThe officials also seized cash in the said locations which was the proceeds of the sale of narcotic substances On the same day another member of the syndicate who is involved in arranging suppliers abroad was also apprehendedWith PTI inputs