Pune: In a significant crackdown on the drug trade in Pune, Bibwewadi police arrested two men involved in the sale of mephedrone, a banned narcotic substance.

The police seized mephedrone and mobile devices valued at ₹2.10 lakh during the operation. The arrests were made on Gangadham Road, Bibwewadi, following a carefully planned operation based on a tip-off.

The accused have been identified as Zubair alias Sultan Latif Khan (27), a resident of Ashrafnagar in Kondhwa, originally from Balrampur, Uttar Pradesh, and Swapnil Bapu Shinde (28), a resident of Laxminagar, Kondhwa, originally from Velhe, Rajgad.

The operation was led by Assistant Police Inspector Sanjay Nikumbh and Sub-Inspector Ashok Yewale, who acted swiftly upon receiving intelligence about the planned sale.

According to police reports, the Bibwewadi police team was on routine patrol on Gangadham Road when they received a tip-off that Khan and Shinde were heading to the area to sell mephedrone.

Acting promptly, the police team laid a trap and arrested the duo at the scene. Upon searching them, officers discovered quantities of mephedrone and mobile devices, with the total value of the seized items estimated at ₹2.10 lakh.

Senior Police Inspector Mangal Modhwe and Crime Branch Police Inspector Manojkumar Londhe supervised the operation, with a team that included Assistant Inspectors Nikumbh and Yewale, as well as officers Sanjay Gaikwad, Santosh Jadhav, Abhishek Dhumal, Shivaji Yewale, Ashish Gaikwad, and Sumit Takpere.

In a related incident, the Anti-Narcotics Cell recently conducted a raid in the Kondhwa area, seizing mephedrone worth ₹40 lakh along with a locally-manufactured pistol from another suspect.