Dawood Ibrahim's drug factory manager Danish Chikna arrested in Mumbai
What's the story
Danish Merchant, aka Danish Chikna, a key aide of India's most-wanted criminal Dawood Ibrahim, was arrested from Mumbai on Friday.
The arrest was made in an ongoing investigation into drug operations allegedly run by Merchant for Dawood in Mumbai's Dongri area.
Another associate involved in these operations, Kader Ghulam Sheikh, was also nabbed in the operation.
Investigation trail
Arrests follow months-long investigation by Mumbai Police
The arrests of Merchant and Sheikh are the result of a months-long investigation launched by the Mumbai Police.
The probe started with the arrest of Mohammed Ashikur Sahidur Rahman near Marine Lines Station on November 8.
Rahman was found with 144gm of drugs, which he later confessed to procuring from Rehan Shakeel Ansari in Dongri.
Drug trail
Subsequent arrests lead to Danish merchant
Following Rahman's confession, Ansari was arrested, and another 55gm of narcotics were seized.
During interrogation, Ansari revealed that the drugs were supplied by Merchant and another associate, Qadir Fanta.
This information prompted police to intensify their search for Merchant and Fanta, culminating in their arrest on December 13 in the Dongri area after a tip-off.
Past encounters
Merchant's history with drug-related activities
This isn't Merchant's first brush with the law over drug-related activities.
In 2019, he was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) when the agency busted Dawood's drug factory in Dongri, seizing narcotics worth crores.
He was also arrested by the NCB in 2021 for possessing 200gm of hashish and was involved in two drug-related cases after a probe into a drug laboratory in Mumbai.
Criminal lineage
Merchant's family ties to underworld
Reportedly, Merchant is the son of Yusuf Merchant, aka Yusuf Chikna. The senior Merchant was a Dongri-based gangster who was a part of the Dawood gang in the 1980s and 1990s.
Merchant's name first came to light after the NCB busted the Chinku Pathan and Arif Bhujwala module in Dongri, South Mumbai, in 2021.