The Navi Mumbai Police have seized drugs worth over Rs 21 lakh, including mephedrone and MDMA, and arrested a Nigerian national in connection with the case, officials said on Wednesday.

The seizure followed a routine police patrol carried out on December 15 along Palm Beach Road. A team noticed a foreign national standing suspiciously near a parked scooter late at night. When the police approached him for questioning, the man abandoned the vehicle and fled the spot, raising further suspicion.

Upon checking the scooter, the police recovered 70 grams of mephedrone powder, estimated to be worth nearly Rs 17 lakh. In addition, 120 MDMA tablets were also found during the initial search, an official release stated.

Following the recovery, police launched a search operation to trace the suspect. He was later arrested from his residence in Koparkhairane. During a subsequent search of the premises, police recovered additional quantities of drugs, including mephedrone powder worth around Rs 4 lakh and 40 purple MDMA tablets.

While the combined value of the seized mephedrone powder has been estimated at over Rs 21 lakh, the police did not specify the market value of the MDMA tablets recovered during the operation.

The accused has been identified as Aniehe Kingsley Chinedu, also known as Aney Kingsley Chinedu. He is a Nigerian national and has been booked under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.

Police officials said further investigations are underway to determine the source of the drugs and to identify possible links to a larger drug supply network operating in the region. Authorities are also examining whether the accused was involved in drug distribution across Navi Mumbai and neighbouring areas.

The Navi Mumbai Police said such operations would continue as part of ongoing efforts to curb drug trafficking and ensure public safety.

Mumbai: A panic broke out at the Bombay High Court on Thursday, December 18, after authorities received a bomb threat, prompting an immediate evacuation of the premises. Security across the area was tightened as a precautionary measure. bomb threats were also received at several magistrate courts, including Bandra, Andheri, and Esplanade.

The Bandra Metropolitan Court also received a bomb threat via email, triggering an immediate response from the Mumbai Police and the bomb squad.

Soon after the threat was received, security teams rushed to the court premises and carried out a thorough search. However, no suspicious object was found during the inspection. Mumbai Police have also launched an investigation to trace the source of the threatening email, identify the sender, and ascertain the motive behind it.

Similarly, in Nagpur, the District and Sessions Court received an email in the morning claiming that two RDX-based explosive devices would soon go off in the building. The email prompted the police to launch an immediate search of the court, which is located in the Civil Lines area. However, the threat turned out to be a hoax as nothing suspicious was found.

Earlier in September, the Azad Maidan police had registered an FIR against an unidentified person for allegedly sending a hoax email about a bomb threat to the Bombay High Court. The case was filed under Sections 353(1) and 353(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for statements causing public mischief.

According to police, the email claimed that a blast would occur inside the court premises, triggering panic just hours after a similar threat was reported in Delhi. The High Court suspended hearings for nearly two hours, and the entire building was evacuated as a precaution

Mumbai: The stenographer posted at court at Mazgaon, Chandrakant Vasudev, was arrested allegedly for demanding and accepting bribes allegedly on behalf of the Additional Sessions Judge, Civil Sessions Court, Court No. 14, Mazagon. Aejazuddin S. Kazi has again approached the special ACB court for bail. The plea is likely to be heard on Thursday.

Vasudev was arrested on November 10 for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 15 lakh in exchange for a favourable verdict in a land dispute case. The special court rejected his first bail plea on November 24. A second bail plea claims no need for further incarceration and investigation can proceed without detaining him.

The prosecution claims Vasudev told the agency that Kazi had instructed him to demand the bribe, and after accepting the amount, Kazi asked him to bring it to his residence. It allegedly started on September 09 when Vasudev told the complainant’s associate in the court washroom to “do something for Saheb (the Judge), and the order will be in your favour”. He later demanded Rs 10 lakh for himself and Rs 15 lakh for the judge at a café. After refusal, he threatened via WhatsApp.