Goa: Curlies owner Edwin Nunes Anticipatory Bail application rejected by Telangana High Court

HYDERABAD: The Telangana High Court Vacation Bench headed by Justice Chillakur Sumalatha, Thursday heard the anticipatory bail application (ABA) of Goan restaurant Curlies owner Edwin Nunes, designated as a bulk drug supplier by the Hyderabad narco cops, praying for his release on Bail in case of arrest in connection with Crime No 374/2022 under various sections of the NDPS Act, registered at the Osmania University Police Station, Hyderabad.

Curlies restaurant at Anjuna in North Goa is one of Goa’s most famous and popular beach shacks and Nunes is the de facto owner and runs and manages the place, though on paper his sister is shown as the owner of Curlies.

During the ABA hearing, Senior Counsel Pradyumna Kumar Reddy appeared for the petitioner/applicant Edwin Nunes and argued before the court that Nunes is innocent and nowhere connected with the case and urged the Court to grant him anticipatory bail in the interest of justice, media outlet The Hans India said in a report.

On the other hand, the Assistant Public Prosecutor Khaja Vizarath Ali objected to Edwin Nunes’ bail plea, claiming that Nunes is A-7 or Accused no. 7 in the drugs case of the Hyderabad police.

APP Vizarath Ali informed the court that in the Sonali Phogat murder case, Edwin Nunes is an accused and was arrested by the Goa Police.

Moreover, the Hyderabad Police went to Goa and nabbed a Goan drug peddler Priteesh Narayan Borkar who was supplying narcotic drugs to consumers and also found out that Borkar’s boss was Edwin Nunes from whom he procured the drugs. They tried to arrest Edwin Nunes but their efforts were in vain, said APP Vizarath Ali, as quoted in The Hans India report.

Nunes has been shown by the Hyderabad cops as the kingpin and financer of an interstate drugs network, with Borkar and others merely working for him as couriers.

The APP informed the High Court that the Hyderabad Narcotic Enforcement Wing (H-NEW) found that Edwin was among the six people who allegedly supplied drugs in bulk to Borkar, who in turn supplied them to clients across the country, some of whom were from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, APP Vizarath Ali alleged.

The Assistant Public Prosecutor urged the Court not to grant bail to the petitioner applicant Edward Nunes or else it may cause inadvertent issues in the investigation of the police and vital clues and links would be lost. He also stated that Nunes was part of an interstate organised drug syndicate and his custodial interrogation was necessary for the police to bust this racket.

Hearing the contentions and arguments of both sides, Justice Chillakur Sumalatha dismissed the bail plea of Edward Nunes, which means he can be arrested at any time by the Hyderabad or Goa Police.

Sources told this reporter, that Nunes’ legal team has rushed to the Supreme Court as they were expecting a rejection by the Telangana High Court. His Special Leave Petition is expected to be filed in the Supreme Court by Friday evening or Saturday morning after a digital copy of the High Court order is available.