For ‘free Thailand trip’, 2 women smuggled marijuana worth Rs 8.5 crore to India; arrested at Mumbai airport with associate

Both the accused admitted before customs officials that they indulged in smuggling of Marijuana despite knowing that trafficking drugs is a punishable offence as they were lured with an offer of a free foreign trip to Bangkok (Thailand), sources said.

Hydroponically grown marijuana or weed is a highly potent variant and is much more expensive.

According to the sources, the Customs department received information that a large amount of drugs would be smuggled to India from Bangkok via Mumbai airport. Based on the inputs, officers laid a trap at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

Hydroponically grown marijuana or weed is a highly potent variant and is much more expensive.

Two of the passengers arrived by flight number SL218 on Tuesday, and one passenger arrived by flight number VZ 760 from Bangkok, sources said. They were intercepted by Customs officers at the airport. Upon questioning, they exhibited signs of nervousness and uneasiness. Examination of their baggage subsequently led to the recovery of high-quality hydroponic weed worth Rs 8.5 crore, the officers said.

Asma, a beauty salon employee who had stopped working due certain health complications, said she was promised a commission of Rs 15,000 for the task, and was supposed to deliver the contraband to a person in Surat, the source added.

An operator from Brazil is suspected to be behind this smuggling attempt, another source said. One of the arrested accused also had the contact number of a Brazilian woman, and it is suspected that she supplied the marijuana.

The three accused women were booked under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act for smuggling commercial quantities of marijuana. Further investigation is underway.