AUGUSTO RODRIGUES
VAGATOR/PANJIM: The Goa zonal office of the Enforce-ment Directorate (ED), along with the Narcotic Control Bureau (NCB), seized cash amounting to over Rs 1.5 crore and drugs valued at more than Rs 1 crore during raids con-ducted on Friday under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The action pertains to al-leged illegal international nar-cotics trafficking and laundering of proceeds of crime.
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The raids, which began at dawn, were primarily conducted at the residence of Omkar Paly-ekar in Vagator, though several other premises were searched si-multaneously.
As reported earlierby O Heraldo (‘ED seizes mobile, moves police over illegal construction on at-tached Anjuna land’, December 27, 2025), the ED had earlier seized Palyekar’s mobile phone after he was called for questioning in con-nection with alleged illegal con-struction on attached land. The agency had then indicated that it would probe drug-related cases based on FIRs registered by the Anti-Narcotic Cell (ANC) involving trafficking of narcotic substances in
commercial quantities. “The nightlife in Goa is linked to drugs and we could not just be qui-et because drugs ruin society worldover and
being silent spectators is crim-inal. We have called in the NCB to assist to handle the narcotic angle and our officers are zeroing in on the money laundering aspect,” dis-closed a highly-placed ED source as the raids continued through Friday. The officer added that searches were primarily conducted at two locations in Vagator, though other premises were also being exam-ined.
The raids, which began around 6 am, saw ED and NCB officers some carrying weapons moving in and out of the premises. The pro-longed operation took many locals by surprise.
“We know what business they are in and also know that they are well connected with the local authorities. The behaviour of the raiding team and the time being taken for the raids is surprising,” said a neighbour, who was drying clothes close to one of the raided residences.
While ED officials confirmed the seizure of over Rs 1.5 crore in cash, sources indicated that this was only the beginning. “This is just the tip of the iceberg,” officials involved in the operation suggested.
