ATS busts drug manufacturing unit in Pune

Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has busted a mephedrone (MD) manufacturing factory in Pune and seized raw chemicals which have the capacity to produce around 200kg of drugs worth Rs 80 crore, police said on Thursday. ATS officials raided the industrial unit, located in Purandar taluka of Pune district, on Wednesday.

The raid came after more than two months of investigation in a drug trafficking case. On December 6, the ATS arrested two people, Mahendra Parshuram Patil (49) and Santosh Balasaheb Adake (29), for their alleged involvment in trafficking of narcotic substance MD (mephedrone) powder, the police said.

Following the arrests, the anti-terror agency seized 14.30kg MD drugs worth over Rs 5.60 crore from locations in Vile Parle (Mumbai) and Saswad (Pune), they said. During investigation in this case, Inspector Daya Nayak and his team came to know Adake used to manufacture MD at Shri Alfa Chemical unit in Purandar, the police said.

On Wednesday, ATS officials raided the factory and seized 10.50kg of MD drugs worth around Rs 4.2 crore and also a huge quantity of raw chemicals, they said. The police, quoting experts, said 200kg of MD drugs worth Rs 80 crore may be produced from the seized raw chemicals.

Since Adake and his associate Patil were already booked in December for drug seizure, no fresh FIR will be registered in the Pune case, police said. The further probe will continue on the basis of the FIR registered in December, they added. Mephedrone or 'meow meow' is a stimulant drug that can come in the form of powder, tablets and capsules.