Customs seizes hydroponic weed from Mumbai airport passenger, airline staff member held with gold dust
The hydroponic weed was worth approximately Rs 94 lakh, and gold dust was valued at Rs 2.78 crore.
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The contraband, also called hydro ganja, was concealed in vacuum-sealed plastic packets and kept inside a trolley bag of the passenger. The Mumbai Customs officers on Friday arrested a passenger and an airline official at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) in separate cases and allegedly seized one kilogram of hydroponic weed worth approximately RS 94 lakh and gold dust valued at Rs 2.78 crore, respectively, from them.
In the first case, officials of the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of the Customs Department laid a trap and intercepted a passenger who had arrived from Bangkok. During the search, the person was found to be hiding 947 grams of greenish coloured lumps purported to be hydroponic weed of marijuana.
The contraband, also called hydro ganja, was concealed in vacuum-sealed plastic packets and kept inside a trolley bag of the passenger. The panchnama was conducted in front of witnesses, and the passenger was arrested under the provisions of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
In the second case, an AIU team intercepted an airline staff member on the airport premises after receiving information that he was carrying gold illegally. During the search, the gold dust mixed with wax and weighing around 3,020 grams was found concealed inside innerwear and in a specially designed belt. The individual was arrested under the Customs Act, 1962. The officials are interrogating the accused to get the inputs regarding the source of the gold and the supplier, said a Customs officer.
On Wednesday night, the Customs agency arrested a person on his arrival at the Mumbai airport and seized suspected hydroponic cannabis weed valued at Rs 14.5 crore from his possession.
The passenger was trying to smuggle the contraband, also called hydro ganja, by concealing it under clothes in his trolley bag. During the examination of the baggage, the officers recovered 14.548 kg of greenish product, which was later confirmed it be hydroponic weed or marijuana, which has an illicit market value of approximately ₹14.5 crore. The Customs Department said that it was currently reviewing the international travel history of the arrested individuals who were arrested to ascertain if they had travelled abroad for the same purpose.
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