The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday conducted raids at 25 premises across multiple states, including Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Odisha, Delhi and Goa, in connection with an international narcotics trafficking and money laundering case.
Sources said the search operations uncovered a well-organised inter-state drug trafficking syndicate.
The raids were carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), following the agency's registration of a case based on an FIR lodged by the anti-narcotics cell of Goa police.
A probe revealed the distribution of narcotic substances on a business-to-business (B2B) basis across several states, including Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and Kerala.
During the searches, the agency seized a substantial amount of cash, narcotic substances, including charas and other contraband, as well as documents and digital devices.
"Analysis of the seized digital devices and documents has revealed evidence of a large-scale supply of narcotics such as cocaine, ecstasy, hash, kush, shrooms and rashol cream across multiple states and within India. The investigation has also revealed the systematic use of courier and postal channels for transporting narcotics, along with the routing of proceeds of crime through UPI, bank transfers, cryptocurrency, and cash transactions," said an agency official.
The searches also revealed instances of layering and concealment of illicit proceeds through complex financial channels.