3 min readApr 25, 2026 09:29 PM IST
Acting on a tip-off, the Local Crime Branch (LCB) of Pune Rural Police arrested three persons from Shirur on April 17 after recovering 47.60 grams of Mephedrone from their possession. During the operation, two vehicles used by the accused were also seized.
What alarmed the investigators more was that the drug peddlers in the area had been using a delivery app to transport narcotics to buyers. “After the purchase of the narcotics was finalised, the supplier used a delivery application platform to deliver the illicit substances,” Pune Rural Superintendent of Police Sandeep Singh Gill said at a press conference on Saturday, adding that a search is currently underway to nab the accused supplier who operated through the app.
The total value of the seized contraband, including the drugs and two vehicles, stood at Rs 21,52,000.
The operation was set in motion when an LCB team carrying out routine crime detection work in the Shirur area received a tip-off. The informant indicated that individuals seated in two four-wheeled vehicles, parked in front of Shivsailila Mangal Karyalaya on the road leading from Nhavara Phata towards Baburaonagar, were in illegal possession of mephedrone that was intended for sale.
A joint team of LCB and Shirur Police Station personnel then conducted a raid at the location.
The three persons who taken into custody, all belonged to Shirur area and were identified as Vishal Maruti More (20), a resident of Bafnamala, Pratik Santosh Langhe (25), from Karade and Mithun Vijaypal Singh (26), of Ramling Road, Savtamali Nagar.
A formal complaint was filed by LCB’s Tushar Ashok Pandare on behalf of the State. A case has been registered at Shirur Police Station under Case No. 335/2026, invoking Sections 8(c) and 21(b) of the NDPS Act, and Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
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Investigators have widened their probe, initiating inquiries with individuals who received narcotics deliveries through the delivery app. Blood samples have been collected from these persons for forensic testing, and further action will follow based on evidence gathered. The investigation is being conducted jointly by the Shirur Police Station and the Local Crime Branch.
“Such operations will continue in the future to curb the rising drug usage among the youth, and efforts to liberate society from the clutches of narcotics will persist,” Gill said.
A similar pattern has emerged in a separate case in Pune. During its investigation in early April, police found that suspects had similarly used a delivery app to move drugs between racketeers. The contraband was carefully packed in boxes and dispatched through the service, making it difficult to trace. Investigators found that the network operated across multiple layers, with intermediaries handling distribution to end users.
