The Mumbai Crime Branch has detained Salim Dola, believed to be a close associate of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, for further questioning regarding the 2024 Sangli MD drug manufacturing case worth around Rs 253 crore. Salim Dola is set to appear in court following the Crime Branch’s request for his custody to delve deeper into the drug-related investigation.
In March 2024, authorities raided an illicit drug production site in Sangli, seizing 122 kg of MD drugs, along with cash and gold valued at approximately Rs 253 crore. During the operation, six individuals, including Pravin Shinde, who allegedly managed the unlawful factory, were apprehended.
Allegedly, Salim Dola funded the MD drug manufacturing units and oversaw the transportation network associated with the drug trade. The Crime Branch’s Unit 7 had previously apprehended Taher Dola and Kubbawala after their extradition from Dubai in connection with the same case. Salim Dola has now been handed over to the Crime Branch by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to further investigate the global drug trafficking network.
Salim Dola, a 59-year-old Mumbai resident, was the subject of an Interpol Red Corner Notice issued at India’s behest in March 2024. He faced charges in multiple drug trafficking cases and had evaded Indian law enforcement for years. Dola’s extensive criminal history spans two decades and includes direct involvement in significant drug seizures in Maharashtra and Gujarat.
