Agartala/Aizawl, June 8: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted coordinated searches across Tripura, Mizoram and West Bengal as part of an ongoing investigation into a major cross-border drug trafficking and money laundering network involving proceeds of crime estimated at more than Rs 142 crore.
According to official sources, the ED’s Aizawl Sub-Zonal Office carried out searches under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, at four locations spread across the Mizoram-Myanmar border region, the Tripura-Bangladesh border belt and parts of West Bengal. The action is linked to a case originally registered by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), Agartala Zonal Unit.
The investigation stems from the seizure of 49.101 kg of methamphetamine tablets and 40 grams of heroin in Tripura on August 21, 2025. Following the seizure, central agencies launched an extensive probe into the narcotics supply chain, financial transactions and cross-border connections linked to the consignment.
Investigators have reportedly uncovered an organised international syndicate that sourced methamphetamine tablets from Myanmar through the Zokhawthar sector in Mizoram’s Champhai district before routing them to recipients in Tripura. The probe has also revealed a sophisticated financial network involving multiple bank accounts and shell entities allegedly used to conceal and layer proceeds generated from the illegal drug trade.
ED officials said that proceeds of crime exceeding Rs 142 crore have been identified so far, and the agency is examining the involvement of additional individuals and entities connected to the network.
The searches underscore growing concerns among security agencies over the use of India’s northeastern states as drug trafficking corridors due to their long and porous borders with Myanmar and Bangladesh. Mizoram, in particular, has emerged as a key transit route for narcotics and other contraband entering the country. Authorities believe the difficult terrain and unfenced stretches along the international border continue to facilitate smuggling activities across the region.
