Extradited Suspect Salim Dola Details Underworld Ties Formed in Arthur Road Jail
Alleged drug kingpin Salim Dola has disclosed details of his criminal trajectory to investigators, revealing how a 1998 arrest led him to forge lasting ties with D-Company associates while lodged in Arthur Road Jail. Dola, who was extradited to India in April, also detailed his transition from a local peddler to establishing a catering business in Nagpada on premises linked to Dawood Ibrahim's late sister, Hasina Parkar.
According to investigators, Dola revealed that his criminal career began around 1991-92 as a local charas peddler in Mumbai. His operations expanded until July 1998, when officers of the Mumbai Police Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) Azad Maidan Unit intercepted him at the Mumbai airport. Dola was arrested while attempting to smuggle 40 kilograms of Mandrax tablets abroad.
Following the airport arrest, Dola was imprisoned in Arthur Road Jail for nearly six months. At the time, the prison housed several accused from the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts, alongside rival D-Company and Chhota Rajan operatives whose violent feud had spilled into correctional facilities.
Concerned for his safety in jail and lacking organized backing, Dola reportedly used contacts from Dongri to cultivate ties with inmates associated with the D-Company syndicate.
These jailhouse relationships continued after his release, helping him secure financial backing to start Bohri Caterers in Nagpada in late 1998. The catering business operated from premises linked to Hasina Parkar, the late sister of Dawood Ibrahim. Though the venture initially performed well, mounting debts forced its closure.
After the catering business failed, Dola returned to narcotics, gradually building a synthetic drug network with interstate and international links. In December 2018, the ANC arrested him and three associates in Vakola, Santacruz (East), seizing 100 kilograms of suspected fentanyl.
Dola secured bail after preliminary forensic tests failed to conclusively establish the presence of fentanyl in the seized samples. Shortly after his release, Dola fled India using fraudulent travel documents. He stayed in the UAE and Istanbul before being extradited to India under Operation Global Hunt. Dola continues to deny any operational relationship with the D-Company.
