MUMBAI, May 29 -- Navin Chichkar, the alleged kingpin of a drug trafficking syndicate operating from Malaysia, has been deported from Malaysia and is now in the custody of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Mumbai. He was recently deported in an operation involving several authorities, including Interpol and the Central Bureau of Investigation. Since January, the NCB has seized from alleged members of the syndicate 11.7 kg of cocaine and 10.4 kg of cannabis and cannabis gummies. Based on an NCB request, Interpol recently issued a Red Corner Notice against Chichkar, which led to his deportation to India. Chichkar first came under the NCB scanner in 2021 in connection with a case of LSD trafficking but he was absconding. He later surfaced in Thailand and was recently located in Malaysia, where he was detained for deportation. A city court on Tuesday remanded Chichkar to the custody of the NCB. Chichkar has a post-graduate degree in psychology from the United Kingdom, according to agency sources. Last month, his father, a local builder, died by suicide in Navi Mumbai. The NCB resumed the hunt for the drug trafficker with the seizure of 200 grams of cocaine concealed in a projector being shipped by air through a private courier to Australia on January 21, agency sources said. Following a bottom-to-top approach during the investigation, the NCB team seized more narcotics in a subsequent operation. This included 11.54 kg of cocaine, 4.9 kg of cannabis and 5.5 kg of cannabis gummies allegedly from the home of a syndicate member in Navi Mumbai, the sources said. The NCB's probe revealed the involvement of the syndicate, which trafficked cocaine from the United States to India, and its further distribution within and outside India, the sources added. The probe revealed the involvement of clearing house agents and hawala operators. So far, the NCB has arrested eight individuals linked to the syndicate. The syndicate was active for at least a year and multiple consignments of cocaine via air cargo were allegedly received in Mumbai during this time, the sources said. "Chichkar's interrogation is likely to reveal more details of his operations including the source of drugs in the US," a NCB source said and added, "Financial investigation in the case has already led to identification of assets including properties and bank accounts in Thailand. Efforts are underway for their attachment."...