Sameer Wankhede subject to CBI investigation in Aryan Khan Drugs Case

Former NCB officer Sameer Wankhede, who took into custody Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan, has been charged with bribery after asking for Rs. 25 crore to avoid naming the actor’s son in a drug case.

Early in October 2021, Aryan Khan, the superstar of Bollywood Shah Rukh Khan’s son, was detained in connection with the Mumbai cruise drugs inquiry. The process of giving Aryan Khan bail involved multiple court hearings and lasted for over four weeks. The Narcotics Control Bureau cleared him of any wrongdoing in the narcotics case eight months later. The same case has now returned to haunt three officials, including the former NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede, who oversaw the investigation.

The owners of the Cordelia ship, where Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan was detained in the alleged drug case, were asked for a bribe of 25 crore by former Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) official Sameer Wankhede, according to a corruption complaint filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

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In the same case, four additional people have also been named for allegedly trying to bribe someone with 25 crore for “not framing” Aryan Khan in the drug case.In conjunction with the bribery case, the investigating agency is also conducting raids at Sameer Wankhede’s residence. The searches, according to the officials with information of the matter, have taken place at 29 different locations in Mumbai, Delhi, Ranchi, and Kanpur.

According to the sources, the CBI was informed that Sameer Wankhede and an ally allegedly paid a 50 lakh advance to avoid naming Aryan Khan in the drug case.

On October 2, 2021, Aryan Khan was detained on the Cordelia cruise liner in connection with an alleged drugs bust. Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan was detained by Sameer Wankhede during a raid on the Cordelia Cruise at the Mumbai International Cruise Terminal for an alleged drugs offence.

The case was initially filed with accusations of drug possession, use, and trafficking. The NCB released Aryan Khan after 22 days in custody in May 2022 owing to “lack of sufficient evidence.