Beautician hired to hoodwink police during liquor smuggling

Surat: The Navsari Local Crime Branch (LCB) arrested a beautician, Nancy Patel, after seizing Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) worth Rs 4.45 lakh from an SUV in which she was travelling with a bootlegger to avoid police suspicion.The bootlegger, identified as Jignesh Patel, managed to flee into nearby fields after spotting the police, while Nancy was caught. An offence has been registered at Vijalpore police station under the Gujarat Prohibition Act.According to the LCB, they received a tip-off that an SUV (registration number DD-09-Q-3006) was transporting liquor from Daman to Kamrej via Navsari. Acting on the information, a team kept watch near Chhapra Crossroads in Vijalpore on Wednesday.The SUV, driven by Jignesh Patel, had Nancy in the passenger seat—apparently to create the impression of a family travelling together and avoid police suspicion. However, as the police signalled the car to stop, Jignesh halted at a distance and fled into the fields. A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of 1,182 bottles of whisky, vodka, rum, and beer worth Rs 4.45 lakh.During questioning, she told police that she had been hired to accompany the bootlegger and was to be paid Rs 4,000 for the trip from Daman to Surat and back, along with refreshments. Investigations revealed that Nancy works as a beautician in Vapi. This was her fifth such trip, for which she had earlier earned around Rs 16,000.Nancy reportedly came in contact with the bootleggers through another beautician, Bhoomi Patel, who introduced her to the network. Police have booked Jignesh Patel, Shrikant Patel, Giliyo, a Kamrej-based receiver, and Bhoomi and Nancy under relevant provisions of the Gujarat Prohibition Act.