East Texan, Others Arrested on Federal Drug Violations

TYLER – U.S. Attorney John M. Bales announced Thursday that five individuals have been arrested following a lengthy investigation into drug trafficking in the Eastern District of Texas. On Aug. 4, a combined task force of federal, state, and local law enforcement executed federal arrest and search warrants in Plano, Carrollton, Dallas, and Tyler. That happened as a result of a joint investigation by the U.S. Drug Administration; the Plano Police Department; the Internal Revenue Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; and the Smith County Sheriff’s Office.

The defendants are named in a 13-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury on Aug. 3. According to the indictment, from at least April 2013, the defendants, who are all related, conspired to distribute synthetic drugs at two retail establishments in the Eastern District of Texas: Minute Stop/Valero Gas Station on Hwy. 64 West in Tyler and Ashes Smokes and Tattoos located in Plano. Those arrested and named in the indictment are Saleem Jaffer Jiwani, 58, of Tyler(pictured); Adeel Uz Zaman Khan, 30, of Carrollton; Nadia Farishta, 53, of Dallas; Sharjeel Jeff Ali, 28, of Dallas; and Nimrose Khan, 32, of Carrollton.

Over $250,000 in cash and in excess of 6,000 packages of synthetic drugs were recovered during Thursday’s law enforcement operations. If convicted, the defendants face as much as 20 years in federal prison.