Dawood aide Salim Dola extradited from Turkey after slip-up exposes hideout
Mohammad Salim Dola, a close aide of fugitive don Dawood Ibrahim and an alleged international drug trafficker, has been extradited to India from Turkey, officials said.
The 59-year-old, a resident of Mumbai’s Dongri, was arrested in Istanbul on the basis of an Interpol Red Notice issued at India’s request in 2024. He had been on the run for years in connection with multiple narcotics trafficking cases.
Officials said tracking Dola had proven extremely difficult, likening the operation to “searching for a needle in a haystack”. His arrest, however, was triggered by a single mistake.
Courier order led to arrest
To evade Indian agencies, Dola had fled to Istanbul and gone completely underground. For nearly 18 months, he reportedly remained confined to his hideout and avoided direct contact with others.
His cover was blown when he recently ordered a courier delivery to his address. The transaction enabled Indian agencies, working with Interpol, to trace his location.
Authorities then alerted local police in Istanbul, who conducted a raid and arrested him. He was brought to Delhi earlier this week.
Multiple passports recovered
During a search of his hideout, officials recovered two Indian passports and a Bulgarian passport.
Dola was allegedly living under a false identity — “Hamza” — using the Bulgarian passport. Authorities are now verifying whether the document is genuine or forged.
A Mumbai court has remanded him to custody of the Narcotics Control Bureau till May 8.
Investigators told the court that Dola is a key figure in international drug trafficking networks linked to Dawood Ibrahim. He has also been identified as the main supplier behind a large consignment of mephedrone seized in south Mumbai in June 2023.
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