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An illegal drug manufacturing unit producing a synthetic stimulant, mephedrone, was busted by the Maharashtra police in Hyderabad’s Cherlapally on September 5, Friday.
The Mira-Bhayandar Vasai-Virar (MBVV) police from Mumbai raided the facility, identified as Vagdevi Laboratories Pvt Ltd. Twelve persons, including the owner of the establishment and a chemical analyst, were arrested, according to The Hindu.
Police found 5.8 kilograms of mephedrone, and huge quantities of other materials used in its production, The New Indian Express reported.
Mira-Bhayandar Vasai-Virar Commissioner of Police Niket Kaushik told the media that the materials seized are estimated to have potentially produced drugs worth Rs 12,000 crore in the international market. On the other hand, Telangana police have told the media that the mephedrone seized from the lab was worth less than Rs 10 crore.
The raid followed the arrest of a woman near Mira Road in August. She was found carrying 178 grams of mephedrone and reportedly revealed during interrogation that the drug had been sourced from Telangana.
A team of 15 officers of the MBVV police Crime Detection Unit, including three senior officers, came to Hyderabad to trace the source. They found the manufacturing unit in Navodaya Colony, Cherlapally, which was raided on September 5.
Apart from mephedrone, police seized 3,250 litres of methylene dichloride, 10,000 litres of ethyl acetate, and 22,250 litres of acetone from the factory, The Times of India reported.
Mephedrone is chemically known as 4-methyl methcathinone (4-MMC), and colloquially as ‘Meow Meow’ or ‘M-Cat’. It has an effect similar to drugs like ecstasy. By increasing the release of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and serotonin, it creates feelings of euphoria and heightened energy.