SSR case: Man held for alleged drug trafficking

Mumbai: A Mumbai court on Thursday remanded an alleged contraband dealer, arrested in connection with the drugs trafficking case linked to the case of actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death, in the custody of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) till September 9.

The accused, Zaid Vilatra (21), was produced before a metropolitan magistrate’s court which remanded him in NCB’s custody for seven days for further probe in the case.

The NCB on Wednesday said it arrested Vilatra and one Basit Parihar in connection with the drug trafficking case linked to the Rajput death case.

Indian currency worth Rs 9,55,750 and foreign currency (USD 2,081, 180 British Pounds, 15 dirhams), which the NCB claimed are “proceeds of drug peddling”, were recovered from Vilatra, officials said.

“Zaid disclosed that he runs an eatery in Bandra which was not giving any pecuniary gains since lockdown. He also disclosed that he is into drug peddling, especially bud, through which he used to earn a substantial amount of money,” the NCB said.

Parihar, a resident of suburban Bandra, is “learnt to have linkages” with the narcotics case registered against Rajput’s girlfriend and actress Rhea Chakraborty and others, officials said.

The role of the actress’s brother Showik Chakraborty and his purported links with people nabbed by NCB are under the scanner of the agency, they said.

Rajput, 34, was found hanging in his apartment in Bandra on June 14.

Rhea Chakraborty is the main accused in the case of Rajput’s death that is being probed by the NCB, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on money laundering charges and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

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