EAGLE Nabs Drug Money Laundering Network Kingpin in Mumbai; Seizes Rs.3 Cr

The EAGLE team successfully apprehended Dargaram Rataji Prajapati, one of the key kingpins in the drug money laundering network operating from Mumbai and seized Rs.3 crore of hawala money.

Earlier, during the raid on Bharath Kumar Chaganlal and Company at Phool Gully at Kalbadevi in Mumbai, Dargaramhad managed to flee and go underground. Investigations revealed that Dargaram and his associates were using this firm as a front to channel drug proceeds of Nigerian cartels through hawala networks.

Acting on credible information, the team seized Rs.3 crore of drug money linked to this hawala chain. Since the crackdown, Dargaram had been living covertly, frequently changing locations and erased all the contact numbers and WhatsApp chats related to his illegal transactions.

On specific intelligence and sustained surveillance, the team successfully apprehended Dargaram, the main hawala kingpin. During interrogation, he corroborated the facts already disclosed by his associates Chetan Singh and Ronak Prajapati, who is a manager, and Chetan Mavji, who frequently visited Bharath Kumar Chaganlal and Company to collect cash and deliver it to Nigerian cartel members.

He further confessed they also have the hawala offices at Javeri Chambers at Ratnapur in Ahmedabad, managed by Devji and Dilip and Bharath Kumar Chaganlal and Company at Chandni Chowk in New Delhi managed by Mukesh.

These are in addition to the Mumbai office. Their agents Uttam Singh alias Jaswant, Kheema Ram alias Raju alias Rajlaxmi of Goa, and Chetan Mavji of Mumbai collect drug-related hawala money, primarily from Nigerian nationals.

The collected drug money was transferred to Nigeria by Chetan Mavji under the direction of Sunny Pascal, who is an absconding Nigerian accused. Nigerians engaged in drug trade exporting fabrics, clothes, human hair, and other goods to Nigeria using this drug money.

After collecting the drug money, Uttam Singh informed Chetan Singh, who then coordinated with Bharath Kumar Chaganlal and Company for cash collection and ensured delivery to Nigerian cargo offices located at Pydhonie and Mandvi at Mumbai.

Maxwell, who was arrested by the Rachakonda police, used five passports for his drug trade in India (four of Nigeria and one of Ghana). This alarms the serious concerns about how deported foreign nationals re-enter India under fake names and passports, continuing their illicit drug business.

In all, the police arrested 25 persons in the hawala drug money and seized net cash of Rs.3.084 crore.