Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: In a significant crackdown on drug-fuelled money laundering, the Telangana Anti-Narcotics Bureau (TGANB), in joint operation with Goa Police, seized Rs 50 lakh in cash from an apartment in the Highland Park complex, Goa. The cash, tightly packed and concealed inside a washing machine, is believed to be part of a hawala network linked to an international Nigerian drug syndicate.
The raid was triggered by intelligence obtained during the interrogation of Emmanuel Bediako alias Maxwell, a Nigerian national arrested in Hyderabad last week with cocaine and ecstasy worth Rs 1.25 crore. A regular visitor to Goa since 2013, Bediako reportedly handled high-grade drugs including ‘celebrity cocaine’ and MDMA, and was set to earn a commission of Rs 1.17 crore for just three trips.
His disclosures led investigators to uncover a major money laundering route funneling drug profits from India to Nigeria via hawala operators. Following a month-long surveillance, the agencies tracked down the cash movement to Goa and launched a late-night operation.
Goa Link: Mapusa Shop Owner Held
Raids were conducted at the Highland Park apartment and Sangeetha Mobile Shop in Mapusa, owned by prime accused Uttam Singh, who has been taken into custody. Officials allege Singh laundered over Rs 2.1 crore in just one week, collecting cash from foreign nationals and routing it through hawala channels in Mumbai to Nigeria.
Authorities stated the operation was carried out just in time — any delay could have resulted in the funds being smuggled out of the country.
Larger Network Under Scanner
TGANB believes the seized cash is only a small piece of a much larger hawala operation. A team has now been sent to Delhi to pursue further leads and trace the broader money trail.
Bediako’s arrest also revealed instructions from his boss ‘Romey’, operating from Nigeria, to expand operations beyond Goa, with Hyderabad being identified as a lucrative market.
