The Goregaon police on Friday seized a truck from Gujarat loaded with 1,615 kg of restricted tobacco worth Rs 1.18 crore and arrested two persons in connection with the case.
According to sources, the police was tipped off on Thursday that a truck full of restricted substances would be coming to the area for distributing and selling it. The sale of gutka and pan masala is banned in Maharashtra.
Following this, officials laid a trap near Grand Sarovar hotel, Goregaon West. During the patrolling of the area, officials noticed a truck in the area, which matched the information in their possession. Accordingly, they stopped the vehicle and questioned the cleaner and the driver of the truck.
“They were not giving us proper responses and their behaviour was very suspicious, so we took them to the police station,” said a senior police official.
Later, during a search of the truck 55 bags were found hidden under a grass heap. “These bags were containing a leading brand’s restricted tobacco worth Rs 1 crore. The total amount of tobacco found was 1,615.68 kg in quantity,” said a police official.
Later, officials seized the restricted tobacco worth Rs 1 crore as well as the truck that is worth Rs 18 lakh after doing the panchanama. They also arrested the driver of the truck, Lukman Ishaq Madara (26) and cleaner, Mohammad Rafiq Husaain Khaota, (22), both residents of Godhra, Panchmahal district, Gujarat.
The duo was booked under sections 328 (Causing hurt by means of poison, etc.), 273 (Sale of noxious food or drink) and 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the IPC and also under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
Confirming the incident, ACP Suresh Shinde of Goregaon region said, “Our investigation is on, and we are now trying to track the origin of the seized material.”
