New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has dismantled a massive cross-border drug smuggling and hawala network, arresting six individuals and freezing 1,424 bank accounts. In a coordinated operation across Mizoram and Manipur, authorities uncovered illicit financial transactions exceeding Rs 175 crore linked to drug cartels operating out of Myanmar.
Conducting raids on October 23 across Aizawl, Champhai, Lawngtlai, and Churachandpur, the ED acted in tandem with the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and Mizoram Police. The investigative agency attached assets worth Rs 17.82 crore in Mizoram. Factoring in previously frozen accounts holding Rs 8.19 crore, total secured assets tied to the syndicate now surpass Rs 26 crore.
According to the ED, the syndicate sold narcotics—including heroin, brown sugar, and methamphetamine—across Manipur, Mizoram, Assam, and Tripura. The illicit proceeds were deposited into numerous rented bank accounts. Account holders allegedly received a commission of Rs 500 for every Rs 1 lakh deposited. To blur the financial trail, the money was swiftly transferred to border regions and routed back to Myanmar drug lords through complex hawala channels.
The agency highlighted the central role of a mini ATM and money transfer center in Churachandpur named ‘Go Alpha Trip,’ operated by an individual identified as H. Gaujalal. Investigators revealed that a syndicate member, Jenngaihnniang alias Taniang, routinely deposited up to Rs 1 crore daily at this center, handing over specific lists of destination accounts. Between 2024 and June 2026, the center facilitated 2,947 transactions totaling Rs 175.03 crore, dispersing funds across various traders and pharmacies to mask their origins.
The probe further exposed the illicit smuggling of precursor chemicals used to manufacture drugs. A Mizoram-based firm, M/s Krishiv Enterprises, allegedly dispatched 32 tons of caffeine anhydrous and 10 tons of aluminum chloride to border pharmacies. The ED suspects these chemicals were actively smuggled into Myanmar to manufacture ‘Yaba’ (methamphetamine) tablets.
Investigators also noted that the hawala funds fueling this operation originated not only from the Northeastern states but also from major metropolitan cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata.