Guwahati: A five-storey commercial building in Champhai, a homemaker’s bank account that allegedly received crores of rupees despite her family’s modest income, and a Mini-ATM counter in Manipur that processed thousands of transactions have emerged as key elements of an alleged cross-border narcotics and hawala network uncovered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The agency’s investigation has traced an alleged financial chain supporting the trafficking of heroin, brown sugar and methamphetamine tablets from Myanmar. According to the ED, the network connected border towns in Mizoram and Manipur with major Indian cities, including Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai.
The ED has arrested six people, frozen 1,424 bank accounts and provisionally attached assets valued at Rs 17.82 crore following coordinated searches conducted on October 23 in Aizawl, Champhai and Lawngtlai in Mizoram, and Churachandpur in Manipur.
With assets worth another Rs 8.19 crore secured earlier, the total value of assets secured in the cases has crossed Rs 26 crore, the agency said.
The investigation spans three money-laundering cases linked to narcotics seizures. The ED alleges that proceeds from drug sales across the Northeast were routed through multiple bank accounts and hawala operators before being used to settle payments with suppliers based in Myanmar.
A drug corridor with a financial return route
The alleged operation centred on the Champhai-Zokhawthar corridor along the India-Myanmar border in Mizoram.
According to the ED, the movement of drugs and money followed opposite directions. Chemicals and other substances allegedly used in drug production moved from India into Myanmar, while finished narcotics entered Mizoram and Manipur before being transported to markets across the Northeast and other parts of the country.
The proceeds from these sales were allegedly channelled back to border towns through hawala operators and bank accounts, enabling payments to suppliers across the Myanmar border.
The agency said the Northeast’s 1,643-km porous border with Myanmar had made the region a significant transit route for drugs originating in the Golden Triangle.
Investigators found that a common set of bank accounts in Champhai, Aizawl and Lawngtlai allegedly received money generated by drug sales in Manipur, Mizoram, Assam and Tripura.
Chemicals allegedly supplied across the Myanmar border
The ED investigation also examined the alleged movement of chemicals used in the manufacture and processing of synthetic drugs.
According to the agency, M/s Krishiv Enterprises dispatched approximately 32 tonnes of caffeine anhydrous in 15 consignments between March and November 2024. It also reportedly supplied 10 tonnes of aluminium chloride anhydrous to retail pharmacies and a general store in Aizawl and Mizoram’s border areas.
Although the consignments were accompanied by e-way bills and GST invoices, the ED alleged that the recipients did not have manufacturing or processing facilities.
The agency suspects that the chemicals were subsequently transported into Myanmar and supplied to tablet-pressing units. Caffeine anhydrous was allegedly used to bulk up methamphetamine in the form of ‘Yaba’ tablets.
In the reverse direction, consignments of heroin, brown sugar and methamphetamine tablets were allegedly transported across the Tiau river at Zokhawthar, opposite Khawmawi in Myanmar, and brought into Champhai.
From Champhai, the drugs were reportedly moved along the Champhai-Aizawl road and National Highway 6 towards Aizawl, Vairengte and the borders with Assam and Tripura.
According to the ED, Myanmar-based organisers allegedly hired local carriers to transport the consignments, concealing the drugs in soap cases and vehicles, including taxis, motorcycles and trucks. Some shipments were reportedly accompanied by escort vehicles.
Payments to the carriers were allegedly made through the same Champhai-based hawala accounts that received proceeds from drug sales across the Northeast.
Mini-ATM counter allegedly processed Rs 175 crore
One of the key leads in the investigation concerns a Mini-ATM and money-transfer counter in Churachandpur, Manipur, operated by H. Gouzalal under the name M/s Go Alpha Trip.
The ED alleged that cash handlers collected money from suspected drug syndicate operatives and channelled it into the formal banking system through Mini-ATM and Customer Service Point (CSP) counters.
A cash handler identified as Zenggainhiang, alias Taniang, allegedly delivered as much as Rs 1 crore a day to the counter, along with lists of beneficiary bank accounts.
Between December 2024 and June 2026, the counter reportedly processed 2,947 transfers amounting to Rs 175.03 crore to traders, pharmacies and individuals in Zokhawthar, Champhai, Lawngtlai and Aizawl, the agency said.
Investigators suspect that some beneficiaries had rented out their bank accounts to alleged narcotics-hawala operators for a commission of Rs 500 per lakh.
The money deposited into these accounts was allegedly transferred within days through the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) and Immediate Payment Service (IMPS) systems. The ED said the transactions showed little cash withdrawal and no corresponding underlying trade.
An analysis of seven accounts found that Rs 11.98 crore had been credited to them, while cash withdrawals amounted to only Rs 17 lakh.
In one case, a homemaker’s account in Champhai reportedly received Rs 15.48 crore, even though the family’s monthly income was around Rs 27,000. The account was allegedly operated by her husband, who worked at a bank, according to the ED.
Hawala-linked accounts recorded Rs 268.80 crore in credits
The investigation also identified alleged unlicensed rupee-kyat exchange operators in Champhai, including Lalrampari and her husband, Lalliansanga, proprietor of M/s JTS Store.
Their accounts reportedly recorded credits totalling approximately Rs 268.80 crore, including Rs 125 crore in cash deposits originating from Assam, Nagaland, West Bengal, Tripura and Delhi.
The ED suspects that money generated through drug sales in major Indian cities was routed back to the border through layered corporate transactions and hawala channels.
Investigators also traced alleged transfers from shell entities based in Kolkata and a shell company in Howrah. One hawala operator, Lalrinkima, reportedly received around Rs 2.14 crore from Kolkata-based entities, while Taniang received Rs 10 lakh from a company based in Howrah.
Cash deposits made in Delhi, Kolkata, Guwahati and Silchar were also traced to accounts associated with Champhai-based operators.
According to the agency, the operators acted on instructions from individuals based in Myanmar, transferring funds to bank accounts across India while settling suppliers’ payments in Myanmar’s currency, kyat, across the border. They allegedly earned commissions ranging from Rs 250 to Rs 500 per lakh.
The ED further alleged that some of the proceeds were invested in properties and businesses. These included Hotel JTS, a five-storey commercial building at Zion Veng in Champhai, which has been provisionally attached at a value of Rs 17.82 crore.
Three narcotics cases linked through financial trails
The ED’s money-laundering investigation originated from three narcotics-related cases.
The first involved the seizure of 4.722 kg of heroin packed in 440 soap cases by Zokhawthar Police in Champhai on March 14, 2025. The consignment was allegedly being transported to Aizawl for a supplier based in Myanmar.
The second case followed the seizure of 49.101 kg of methamphetamine tablets and 40 grams of heroin by the Narcotics Control Bureau in Agartala on August 21, 2025. The consignment was intercepted along National Highway 6A near Seling in Mizoram and was allegedly sourced from Myanmar for delivery at the Damchhera-Kanhmun border.
The third case arose from a seizure by Churachandpur Police on July 2, 2026, involving 2.413 kg of brown sugar and Rs 31.43 lakh in cash. The cash was suspected to represent proceeds from drug supplies originating in Myanmar.
According to the ED, the financial investigation connected the three cases, with the same hawala-linked accounts allegedly being used to settle payments for narcotics transported through the border corridor.
Six arrested as investigation continues
The six people arrested under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are Kashyap G. Thakkar of Aizawl, Thangkhuala of Champhai, T. Chatuan Vanlalgakha of Aizawl, and Zenggainhiang alias Taniang, Nengzatuan Valte alias Tuanpi, and H. Gouzalal of Churachandpur.
Taniang and Tuanpi were already in judicial custody in connection with narcotics cases. They were formally arrested in the money-laundering investigation after obtaining permission from the Special Judge, ND&PS, Churachandpur.
The searches covered premises associated with suspected hawala operators, alleged mule-account holders, front businesses, the Mini-ATM counter and bank branches holding accounts considered relevant to the probe.
Investigators seized ledgers, cheque books, debit cards, mobile phones and other digital devices, the agency said.
The ED is now examining other customers linked to the Churachandpur Mini-ATM network, operators of beneficiary accounts, alleged recipients based in Myanmar and the end users of the chemicals. The possible involvement of bank officials and Customer Service Point operators is also under scrutiny.
The investigation is continuing as the agency seeks to identify additional participants, trace the wider financial network and attach further assets suspected to represent proceeds of crime.
