Rs 2,000 crore drug haul: DEA gives evidence against Vicky Goswami

The Thane police has received evidence against alleged drug lord Vicky Goswami from the United States’ Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in the '2,000-crore ephedrine seizure case. The Thane police, which has in its possession evidence against Goswami from 2014 onwards, is planning to request the government to take custody of him. Officials confirmed there is no evidence against Goswami’s alleged wife and yesteryear actress Mamta Kulkarni.

According to a police officer, the DEA had been working on the drug racket since 2014 and it had evidence against the main accused since then. Sources said, “We now have Goswami’s business links in India, the names of his gang members in the country, and evidence related to transactions that happened in India since 2014.”

Commenting on the evidence, a senior official from Thane police said, “It will really help the investigation and strengthen our case. We will arrest those who handle his business in India. With this evidence, we will be able to send our request to Interpol soon.”

Officials from DEA, a federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. department of justice, which is tasked with combating drug smuggling, had met the Thane police and appreciated their work in busting the racket in April, 2016.

Although there is no evidence against Kulkarni in these documents, the Thane police mentioned her name in the second chargesheet as an accused.

They have also sealed eight of Kulkarni’s bank accounts, which contain Rs 93 lakh, at bank branches in Nariman Point, Parel, Dharavi, Malad in Mumbai; Kalyan and Badlapur in Thane; and Bhuj and Rajkot in Gujarat.

However, the police still said they can’t send her an Interpol notice due to lack of evidence.