Mumbai cruise raid: 18 persons including a Nigerian national arrested

Mumbai - Narcotics Control Bureau official says the Nigerian national was arrested with 40 tablets of Ecstasy

A total of 18 people including a Nigerian national have been arrested in the case related to the seizure of drugs following a raid at a party on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast.

The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) Mumbai director Sameer Wankhede said that the Nigerian national was arrested with 40 tablets of Ecstasy.

“A total of 18 people, including a Nigerian national, have been arrested in the case related to the seizure of drugs following a raid at a party on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast,” said Wankhede.

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Mumbai court sends Aryan Khan to judicial custody for 14 days

An NCB team busted an alleged drugs party on the Cordelia Cruise ship which was on its way to Goa at mid-sea on October 2 night.

Earlier on Thursday, Mumbai court sent Aryan Khan and seven others to judicial custody for 14 days in connection with a drug seizure on a cruise ship off the Mumbai coast.

The NCB took Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan to its office in Mumbai after producing him before Esplanade Magistrate court. The accused will be kept in the NCB office in judicial custody till Friday because the jail would not accept new inmates at this hour.

The court in Mumbai also said it will hear the bail plea of Aryan Khan at 12.30pm on Friday and asked the NCB to file a reply by then.

The court further said that the case will now be heard by special Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) court.

As many as 18 arrests have been made in the cruise ship raid case so far. Total 17 have been produced before the court and 18th person is yet to be produced before the Mumbai court.

Achit Kumar, who is the 17th person arrested by the NCB, was remanded to NCB custody till October 9. His arrest was made after his name was disclosed by Aryan Khan and Arbaz Seth Merchant.

An NCB team busted an alleged drugs party on the Cordelia Cruise ship which was on its way to Goa at mid-sea on October 2 night. Eight persons including Aryan Khan, Arbaz Seth Merchant, Munmun Dhamecha, Vikrant Chhoker, Ismeet Singh, Nupur Sarika, Gomit Chopra and Mohak Jaswal were produced before Mumbai’s Esplanade Court earlier which remanded them to NCB custody till October 7. On Thursday, they were again produced before the court which then remanded them to judicial custody.

They were arrested on October 3 in connection with the drug seizure on the cruise ship.

Satish Maneshinde, the lawyer arguing in defence of Aryan Khan said in the Court: “Accused number 1, Aryan Khan was invited for the cruise party. However, he did not have a boarding pass. He didn’t have any seat or cabin there. Secondly, according to the seizure, nothing has been found in his possession. He is arrested only based on chats.”

The NCB has also arrested Abdul Qadir Sheikh, Shreyas Nair, Manish Darya and Avin Sahu among others.

• India