Tavera a favourite among citys drug peddlers,say ANC sleuths

Use of Tavera cars among drug peddlers is on the rise in the city,reveal sleuths of Anti Narcotic Cell.

Use of Tavera cars among drug peddlers is on the rise in the city,reveal sleuths of Anti Narcotic Cell (ANC). According to them,in the recent two operations carried out last week,it was found that vehicles used by the drug peddlers were Tavera cars. Officals of the ANC claimed that because of the extra space in the vehicle,Tavera cars have been increasingly used by drug peddlers.

Around 10 months ago,our unit had arrested many drug peddlers in Ghatkopar and Borivali in two separate operations. In Ghatkopar,we seized 100 kilograms of cannabis from peddlers and in Borivali 15 kilograms of cannabis were seized from them. In both the cases,vehicles used by the accused were Tavera. They had stashed contraband in secret compartments carved out inside the vehicle, said Police Inspector Mrityunjay Hiremath of the ANC,Bandra unit.

In the last weeks operation too,the accused had used the extra vacuum space in the vehicle for stashing the contraband. Compared to other SUVs like Tata Sumo and Tata Safari,Tavera is more spacious and is ideal for stashing narcotics. Tavera cars have bigger doors and the boot of the vehicle also has a lot of space where hidden compartments can be created. Moreover,basic model of Tavera costs around Rs 4.80 lakh,which is much cheaper than a Sumo or a Safari, said Hiremath.

On August 9,acting on a tip-off,ANC sleuths intercepted a Tavera car with Rajasthan registration number in Pydhonie and arrested three men,identified as Babu Khan (43),Sikandar Khan (42) and Harish Pandit (30),for smuggling charas. According to ANC,the accused are Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir residents. In another case on August 9,the ANC arrested four men for carrying 75 kilograms of charas. According to ANC,they were also travelling in a Tavera car that had a UP registration number. Of the four arrested accused,two belong to Uttar Pradesh,said ANC officials.

We are still interrogating the accused and conducting further investigation in the matter, said Hiremath.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram