The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday conducted searches at four locations across the Tripura–Bangladesh border, Mizoram–Myanmar border, and West Bengal in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to a major narcotics seizure case registered by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).

According to official sources, the searches are being carried out under Section 17 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The investigation stems from an NCB case involving the seizure of 49.101 kilograms of methamphetamine and 40 grams of heroin in Tripura on August 21, 2025.

Sources said some of the searched premises in Tripura are located barely 200 metres from the Bangladesh border, highlighting concerns over the use of border areas for cross-border narcotics trafficking and related financial transactions. In Mizoram, one of the locations searched is situated approximately 500 metres from the Myanmar border.

The ED is probing the alleged laundering of proceeds generated through the illicit drug trade and examining possible links between drug trafficking networks operating along India's eastern borders and their financial channels.

Officials stated that evidence gathered during the searches will be analysed to trace the flow of funds, identify beneficiaries, and uncover the broader network involved in the case.

Further details are awaited as the search operations continue.