Ephedrine case: Cops on lookout for law student

Thane’s anti-narcotic cell has started a search for a law student from Navi Mumbai who is allegedly involved in the Rs 2,000 crore ephedrine drug haul case. The team received information about him after they recently arrested a Nigerian national from Navi Mumbai.

MoB Christian, a Nigerian national, was arrested on Thursday by a police team. The police conducted a search in his house on Friday, in which five kg of ephedrine, 90 grams of ICE drug and mephedrone were confiscated from his place. Officials said, “The accused confessed that he had sent 40 kg ephedrine abroad via cargo and 20 kg to Delhi and Mumbai. A law student of a Navi Mumbai college is also involved in the case.”

A Thane police official said, “Christian had taken a contract (for the drug’s supply) from the 11th accused in the case, Shushil Assikanan, and used to send those materials to Mumbai and Delhi. We have got clues about the Delhi link and another team is working to find out the accused over there. Apart from this, the law student who is involved in this case is also involved in the marketing and selling of the drug that he used to take from Christian. Christian has confessed that he has sent drugs via cargo flights out of India and to Delhi too by stashing them (with the help of other people) in the western-style commode in the flights.”

Christian was arrested as the12th accused in the ephedrine haul case. Sources said he had signed a contract for the drug’s supply with a key accused in the case, Assikanan, and had also purchased 100 kg of the drug from him. Assikanan was nabbed from the Bangalore airport road after officials got a tip about him. He used to work in a factory in the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation area.