Drug materials worth Rs. 2,000 crore seized in Thane

Thane (Maharashtra): The Maharashtra Police on Saturday arrested five people with nearly 18.5 kilograms of drug materials in Thane. Acting on a tip-off, police, along with the narcotics department of the Thane Crime Branch, seized over 18 kilograms of ephedrine from the possession of the accused in Thane and neighbouring Solapur. Ephedrine is a raw material used to prepare party drugs. "Five people have been arrested in this case. Two cases have been filed and we are investigating further. We have been granted the custody of the arrested till April 20," said Thane Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh. Police, meanwhile, arrested two men in the outskirts of Thane and later arrested two more with drugs. The investigation led them to a godown of a pharmaceutical company in Solapur, where they arrested an employee of a company, Avon Lifesciences Ltd. The godown has also been seized as Avon failed to produce documents for the 9,500 kilograms (20,944 pounds) of ephedrine found there. "The seized 18.5 kilograms of drugs are worth Rs.1,500-2,000 crores," said Singh.