Dawood Ibrahim’s Drug Empire Kingpin Salim Dola Deported from Turkey, Handed Over to Indian Agencies

New Delhi: Salim Dola, a close associate of fugitive mafia don Dawood Ibrahim and the alleged key operator behind his drug network, was deported from Istanbul and handed over to Indian investigative agencies on Tuesday, April 28, 2026. The deportation followed an operation by India’s intelligence department in coordination with international agencies. Dola is currently under interrogation.

Who Is Salim Dola?

Born in 1966 in Mumbai’s Byculla neighbourhood into a middle-class family, Dola entered the city’s underworld early. His initial connect to organised crime came through Chhota Shakeel, then an active member of Dawood Ibrahim’s D-Company. In his early criminal years, Dola was involved in smuggling gutkha tobacco products across Mumbai and Delhi before moving into drug trafficking, starting with marijuana.

In 2012, the Narcotics Control Bureau arrested him with 80 kilograms of marijuana. He spent nearly five years in prison before a court acquitted him. After his release, Dola came into contact with fugitive drug supplier Kailash Rajput.

It was through this association that Dola allegedly entered the synthetic drug trade. With Rajput’s support, he began producing a synthetic drug known locally as “Button” manufactured using dangerous opioids including Fentanyl and sold in tablet or pill form.

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In 2018, the Anti-Narcotics Cell of the Mumbai Police arrested him in Santacruz and seized 100 kilograms of fentanyl. He was granted bail within four months after forensic reports showed the samples had tested negative. Following his release on bail, Dola reportedly fled India and relocated to the United Arab Emirates, where he allegedly set up a real estate business in his son Tahir’s name reportedly used to invest proceeds from his drug operations.