Panaji: The crime branch police probing the inter-state spurious liquor smuggling racket has arrested the alleged masterminds, Kursingh Rajput (42), Bharat Singh Rathore (25), both natives of Rajasthan, and Munaf Shaikh (42), a native of Sawantwadi, Maharashtra.
Last week, the police had busted the racket, which led to the arrest of four labourers and seizure of over 5,600 litres of spurious liquor during a raid conducted at a godown at Dhawshire in Tisk-Usgao.
During the course of investigation, the role of the three masterminds came to light, police said.
Sources in the police said that each of the accused had a specific role in the racket. Rajput reportedly looked after the important task of orders and delivery, while Shaikh managed the state border crossings. Rathore looked after the hiring of labourers for the task, sources said.
According to police, a similar case was registered by the crime branch police station following a complaint by Deputy Commissioner, Excise, last year. Police said the accused involved in that case are highly suspected to be involved in this crime. A letter requesting for a transfer warrant of the accused has been sent to the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), Ponda. If approved, the accused will be taken into custody, police said.
The police probe has revealed that the masterminds had systematically used labourers to shield themselves from the enforcement agencies.
Sources in the police said the operation was a well-orchestrated racket in which the main accused operated from behind the scenes while using small-time labourers as the public face of the illegal trade.
The police probe has also found that bootleggers would allegedly transport the contraband under the guise of medical supplies. Sources said several thousand litres of liquor has already been transported to faraway locations, including to places like Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh. The police have come across invoices and related data that point to the smuggling of a large quantity of booze out of Goa.
It may be noted that on November 3, the crime branch had raided the godown in Dhawshire, busting the inter-state liquor smuggling racket.
The police had arrested four labourers –Rajput, Mukesh Adiwasi (50) and Prakash Meena (28), all three from Rajasthan, while the fourth accused Mahendra Singh Rajput (28) is a native of Gujarat. During the raid, police had seized two trucks and attached 29 vehicle registration number plates of different states. The total worth of the seized material was around Rs 1.5 crore, the police said.
