Maharashtra State Excise dept seizes over 200 boxes of scotch worth Rs 2 crore; two arrested

In one of its largest seizures, the flying squads of Maharashtra State Excise on Sunday raided and seized over 200 boxes of scotch valued at Rs 2 crore and arrested two persons.The flying squads of Konkan division, Thane, and Andheri led by excise inspectors SR Lad and Manoj Chaudhary had received specific intelligence about transportation of fake Johnnie Walker scotch bottles by a suspect. Based on the information, the teams laid a trap on 17th Road near Khar Gymkhana and intercepted the 30 year-old suspect, whose name has been withheld.[caption id="attachment_4303395" align="alignleft" width="380"]

Maharashtra State Excise on Sunday raided and seized over 200 boxes of scotch valued at Rs 2 crore. Image credit: Sourced by Sanjay Sawant[/caption]The questioning of the suspect led the teams to another suspect who was intercepted with four bottles of illicit scotch near Vijay Sales showroom in Andheri West. His questioning led the vigilance officers to a godown at Emerald Apartment on Parsi Punchayat Road in Andheri East where the officials seized over 200 boxes of whiskey.Deputy Commissioner, Konkan division of state excise Tanaji Salunkhe said, “We had information that the first suspect was carrying 10 to 12 bottles of scotch, but when we nabbed him, we seized 27 to 28 bottles. His questioning revealed his supplier’s name. We then made the first suspect place an order for four bottles of scotch with that supplier, and caught the supplier.""His questioning led us to the godown. 80 percent of the stock appears to be genuine,” Salunkhe told Firstpost refusing to reveal the identities of the two persons apprehended since it could hamper further investigations.The seizure was carried out under the supervision of excise commissioner Dr Ashwini Joshi.