Palghar: Nigerian national held with over 2kg mephedrone worth Rs 1.02 crore, landlord booked

A 53yearold Nigerian national has been arrested after police seized more than 2 kg of mephedrone worth Rs 102 crore from his possession in Maharashtras Palghar district officials said on WednesdayPolice have also registered a case against the landlord of the rented flat where the accused was staying alleging that the property was rented out without carrying out the mandatory police verification required for foreign nationalsAntiterrorism cell acts on tipoffAccording to police the AntiTerrorism Cell received specific information that foreign nationals were allegedly involved in the sale of narcotic substances from a flat in the Nalasopara area of Palghar districtBased on the intelligence input a team conducted a raid on Monday and searched both the suspect and the rented premisesTulinj Police Station Senior Inspector Amar Marathe identified the accused as Justine Usifo alias Michael Grace a Nigerian nationalDrugs worth over Rs 1 crore seizedDuring the search operation police recovered 2054 kg of mephedrone a synthetic narcotic with an estimated market value of Rs 10275000Officials said the seized contraband was taken into custody and sent for further legal and forensic procedures The source of the narcotics intended distribution network and possible links to other individuals are now under investigationPolice are also examining whether the accused was operating alone or was part of a larger drug trafficking networkLandlord booked over verification lapseInvestigators found that the accused had been staying in the rented accommodation without the property owner completing the mandatory verification process for a foreign nationalBased on the findings police registered a case against the landlord for allegedly facilitating the offence by failing to comply with verification requirements before renting out the premisesOfficials said landlords are legally required to complete police verification before renting accommodation to foreign nationals and failure to do so can invite legal actionMultiple laws invoked in the casePolice have registered a case against the accused under relevant provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances NDPS Act the Immigration and Foreigners Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya SanhitaThe investigation is continuing to determine the origin of the seized drugs identify any associates of the accused and trace possible supply routesPolice have also appealed to property owners to strictly follow police verification procedures before renting homes to foreign nationals stating that compliance is essential for maintaining public safety and preventing unlawful activitiesWith inputs from PTI