Drugs worth Rs 9 crore seized from passenger at Nagpur airport

The customs department said its officials on Thursday morning seized narcotics drugs worth Rs 8.81 crore from a passenger who arrived at the Nagpur international airport from Uganda, and placed him under arrest.

A release from the Nagpur customs said its officials seized 2.937 kg of methaqualone, a banned sedative hypnotic drug, worth Rs 8.81 crore from the passenger, a native of Tamil Nadu.

The 45-year-old resident of Chennai, coming from Uganda via Doha by a Qatar Airways flight, arrived at the airport at 3 am and was intercepted by officials when he was walking through the green channel without declaring anything to customs, said the release.

”However, the alert officers of customs at the airport on passenger’s profiling noticed his abnormal behaviour. Therefore, he was thoroughly checked by officers, in which suspicious items, including one dummy propeller and two plate shaped discs, were found in his baggage.

”Thereafter, when the dummy propeller and discs were cut open for checking, it was found that white and yellow coloured powder substance was filled inside the propeller and discs. On testing with a drug detection kit, the white and yellow powdered substance was found to be methaqualone,” it said.

The release said the passenger was arrested under provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS Act).

Further investigation was underway, it added.