On Monday, Mumbai's Anti‑Narcotics Squad nabbed two men in Andheri East, catching them as they tried to flee on the footpath of Andheri‑Kurla Road, near Airport metro station.
The suspects, 35‑year‑old Adnan Ahmed Niaz Ahmed Siddiqui from Mazagon and 29‑year‑old Saud Mushtaq Maniar of Girgaon, allegedly belong to a cartel that hides ketamine in packaged food items shipped by air to Thailand, Indonesia, Myanmar and Malaysia.
The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority police chief said the duo were caught after a routine sweep of the area, and that white crystalline drug was retrieved from their luggage. He added that a case has been registered under the NDPS Act and that investigators are mapping the network.
Local residents say the crackdown on drug trafficking has eased traffic jams on the congested Andheri‑Kurla corridor, while a nearby food stall owner noted the smuggling operation had once threatened to flood the area with cheap drugs. The next step will see the case heard in the Mumbai Special Court next week.