BENGALURU: While the Central Crime Branch (CCB) police have made several arrests in the Sandalwood drug racket case, Sheikh Faisal, who is said to be a major drug dealer, has still managed to remain elusive.
Faisal is said to be very close to an MLA and is absconding after the police started the probe in the drugs case. Sources said that they have launched a massive manhunt to nab him. "We have spoken to his family members and gathered some information about him. However, they are requesting us not to search for him and they will convince him to surrender if we promise them that we won’t treat him badly. We have made it clear that he cannot escape and will have to face legal action," the sources said.
The police said that Faisal, who was a mechanic at Chamarajpet about 15 years ago, had become a major drug dealer. “He has close links with several politicians, actors and also cricketers. He used to organise parties which were attended by celebrities and where drugs flowed freely. He is the one who took a few well-known actors from Karnataka to a casino in Colombo in Sri Lanka,” the police said.
Further, activist Prashanth Sambargi, who appeared before the CCB police on Saturday, told them that many big names will come out if Faisal is arrested. Sambargi also alleged that Faisal was very close to Chamarajpet MLA B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, police sources said.
Cops meet Special Public Prosecutors
On Sunday, senior police officers held a special meeting with the Special Public Prosecutors (SPP) appointed in the case. The government has appointed Veeranna G Tigadi and S Ravindra as SPPs of the case. Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Sandeep Patil and other senior officers met the prosecutors and discussed the progress in the investigation and the evidence they have collected so far.