D-gang druglord Dola brought to Delhi from Istanbul after two-year global manhunt

Delhi/Mumbai: Central agencies and the NCB brought back drug trafficker and D-company henchman Mohammed Salim Dola (59) on Tuesday morning, ending a two-year-long manhunt that spanned several countries.In an operation monitored by the MHA, Dola was flown from Istanbul on a special aircraft and landed at the technical area of Delhi airport. A key supplier of mephedrone, or meow meow drug, Dola was detained in Turkiye last week after being geolocated there in close coordination with international and Indian intelligence agencies as part of ‘Operation Global-Hunt'. His arrest is being seen as a major blow to Dawood Ibrahim's narcotics network across Turkiye and Bulgaria — a critical segment of the Balkan route linking Asia and South American producers to European markets, said sources. Dola was produced before a magistrate, and a transit remand was sought. He will be taken to Mumbai thereafter. Originally a resident of Dongri in Mumbai, Dola had allegedly been operating a multi-state narcotics syndicate from abroad after fleeing India nearly a decade ago. In early April, the agencies zeroed down on a flat in Beylikduzu district of Istanbul where Dola had been living and operating from under an assumed identity. Subsequently, the authorities in Turkiye and Interpol were alerted and a raid was conducted resulting in his apprehension in a coordinated action. Officials said that Dola's role consistently emerged as that of a bulk supplier to downstream distribution networks in India, making him a wanted subject for the Gujarat ATS and the Mumbai police. Union home minister Amit Shah praised the multi-agency operation. "Zero tolerance against Narco syndicates. Under Modi govt's mission to ruthlessly smash drug cartels, our anti-narcotics agencies have extended their claws across borders through a robust network of global agencies. Now no matter where they hide, no place is safe for drug kingpins," he said in a post on X.Sources indicated that Dola is wanted in over a dozen cases across the country, including major drug investigations linked to the busting of mephedrone (MD) manufacturing units in Mysuru, Sangli, Karjat, Mira-Bhayander and Telangana. Investigators believe his role primarily involved supplying raw materials for the production of synthetic drugs and managing their distribution channels. Wanted in multiple narcotics trafficking cases in India, Dola had remained on the fugitive list since 2018. The first breakthrough came last year when Dola's son, Tahil, and other associates were arrested by Mumbai police after deportation/extradition from the UAE in coordination with the CBI. The agencies subsequently intensified their efforts to zero down on Dola's location based on technical and informers' inputs. His UAE passport made Dola more accessible to Indian agencies, said sources."Over the years, Dola, a close aide of Dawood Ibrahim, had established a major transnational drug trafficking syndicate spanning a number of countries in the Middle East, Africa and Europe. His two-decade long criminal antecedents include direct involvement in cases involving multiple high-value seizures of heroin, charas, mephedrone, mandrax and methamphetamine in Maharashtra and Gujarat," the NCB said.