Surat: The Surat Special Operations Group (SOG) arrested a tattoo artist and his aide with the city’s largest-ever seizure of electronic cigarettes, collectively valued at Rs 1.07 crore.The main accused, Manthan Shah, who owns three tattoo studios in the Piplod and Adajan areas, was found operating a parallel illegal business of selling e-cigarettes. Shah had previously been arrested with e-cigarettes worth Rs 17 lakh.According to officials, SOG police inspector Atul Sonara and his team acted on a tip-off that Shah had stocked e-cigarettes in a flat in Mahan Terrace, Adajan. A raid on the location yielded banned products worth Rs 4.67 lakh, including e-cigarettes of various premium brands. The police also recovered tobacco pods and refillable coils used in the devices.Shah’s interrogation further revealed information about a larger stock hidden at his friend Janak Patel’s residence in Coral Palace in Pal area for distribution.The police took Shah along for a second raid, which led to the discovery of 16 boxes filled with banned e-cigarette products valued at Rs 1.02 crore.During questioning, Patel admitted that Shah had given him the stock for resale. The accused were supplying e-cigarettes to paan shops and retail outlets across upscale areas such as Vesu, Althan, Pal, Adajan, Piplod, Ghoddod Road, and City Light.Deputy commissioner of police Rajdeep Nakum said: “Shah sourced the e-cigarettes from a Delhi-based trader about a year ago. He is originally from Ahmedabad, while Patel hails from Mehsana. Shah had also been booked in a similar case in 2023 by Adajan police.”Both Shah and Patel have been booked under The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019, and further investigation is underway.
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