In a major breakthrough against the international narcotics network linked to underworld don Dawood Ibrahim’s syndicate, the Mumbai Police have arrested Mohammed Salim Suhail Shaikh alias Lavish, a Dubai-based aide of Dawood’s trusted associate Salim Dola. The arrest is in connection with a R252-crore mephedrone (MD) manufacturing racket busted earlier this year in Sangli district.

Officials said Shaikh, who had been hiding in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since 2024, was arrested with the help of central agencies, following the issuance of a red-corner notice (RCN). After completing legal formalities in the UAE, he was extradited to India and arrested on October 22. He was produced in court, which remanded him in police custody till October 30.

Dawood link

According to investigators, Shaikh was the key handler for Dola in Dubai and oversaw the supply of precursor chemicals and distribution of ready-to-sell MD to networks across India. Before fleeing to the UAE, Shaikh was known to reside in the Dongri area of Mumbai and operated closely with Dola.

Police sources revealed that Dola — currently believed to be hiding in Turkey — continues to control narcotics operations through Shaikh. “He was Dola’s right-hand man, managing the production and sale of MD through multiple states,” said an officer.

The drug factory case

The present case dates back to February 2024, when Unit 7 officers, acting on a tip-off, intercepted a woman identified as Parveen Bano Gulam Shaikh near Sayaji Pagare Chawl, CST Road, Kurla West. The Police seized 641 grams of MD, Rs 12.20 lakh in cash, and gold ornaments worth Rs 1.5 lakh.

Subsequent technical investigations led officers to Sajid Mohammed Asif Shaikh alias Dabs, who was arrested from Mira Road with 3 kg of MD worth R6 crore and Rs 3.68 lakh in cash. His interrogation revealed that the drugs were supplied by Shaikh’s Dubai network.

Further leads helped police trace the supply chain to Sangli district, where a massive raid was conducted at a factory in Irali village (Kavthemahankal) on March 25, 2024. Officers recovered 122.5 kg of MD worth Rs 245 crore, along with precursor chemicals and raw materials. “Six persons were arrested at the spot. After it was established that several accused currently residing abroad were involved in the case, RCNs were issued against them,” said DCP (Detection-I) Vishal Thakur.

Assets seized, arrests made

So far, police have seized MD, cash, vehicles, gold, and properties worth R256.49 crore. A total of 15 accused have been arrested in the case, and three of them have been brought back to India from abroad, officials said. The case has exposed a vast drug manufacturing and smuggling operation extending across seven states, including Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh.

The investigation has also revealed that the syndicate used angadiya channels and hawala routes to transfer drug money. Police have already arrested the angadiya operator involved in the transactions.

Global drug links

Officials said Salim Dola, originally from Cotton Green, played a major role in reviving the D-Company’s narcotics business after the death of Dawood aide Iqbal Mirchi. Dola’s network reportedly stretches to cartels in South Africa and Mexico. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Mumbai Police have previously registered multiple cases against Dola and his associates under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Assets worth R6.4 crore have been frozen by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).

Other arrests, extraditions

Earlier, Dola’s son, Tahir, and nephew, Mustafa Mohammed Kubbawala, were extradited from the UAE to India in connection with the Sangli drug factory case. Over the past five years, enforcement agencies across the state have seized synthetic drugs worth R9522 crore, revealing the alarming scale of Maharashtra’s MD crisis.

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