Drug worth Rs 16 lakh seized in Mumbai; rape accused among 2 arrested

The Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Mumbai crime branch has arrested two persons, police said on Wednesday.

The Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Mumbai crime branch has arrested two persons, one of whom was out on bail in a rape case, and seized 160 grams of mephedrone, a synthetic stimulant drug, valued at around Rs 16 lakh here, police said on Wednesday.

The accused persons were identified as Abdulla Iqbal Shaikh (29), a resident of Jogeshwari (East), and Altaf Abdul Rahman Shaikh (44), a resident of Andheri (West), an official said. Altaf Shaikh is a notorious criminal and has at least 13 cases, which include rape, molestation, theft, rioting and assault, pending against him, he said. The 44-year-old is also an accused in a case filed earlier under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act) at the ANC's Kandivali unit, the official said.

He recently came out of prison on bail in a rape case, the police official said. Officials of the ANC's Bandra unit on Tuesday evening apprehended Abdulla Shaikh and recovered 100 grams of mephedrone from him during patrolling in Andheri (West), he said. His questioning revealed he had procured the drug from Altaf Shaikh, the official said. The ANC Bandra team later raided Altaf Shaikh's residence and arrested him with 60 grams of mephedrone, he said.