Seventeen suspected drug traffickers have been booked under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in Thane district in Maharashtra, a senior police official said on Friday, reported the PTI.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Kalyan), Atul Zende, the group was allegedly involved in large-scale cannabis (ganja) smuggling, operating a distribution network that spanned from Andhra Pradesh to Maharashtra. The syndicate had a well-established presence in Thane, Kalyan, Badlapur, Solapur, and Pune.