Mumbai customs seize hydroponic weed, animals and gold worth over Rs 11 crore

Mumbai: In a major operation, hydroponic weed, exotic wildlife and gold worth over Rs 11 crore was seized by the Customs from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai over the weekend.

The intelligence-based operations were carried out by Airport Commissionerate, Mumbai Customs Zone-III.

On the basis of profiling, Customs officers intercepted two passengers arriving from Dubai to Mumbai and recovered 24 KT gold dust in wax and gold pieces having net weight 1.650 kg valued at Rs. 1.49 crore across two cases.

The gold was found concealed inside the body cavity of the passengers and pockets of the passengers. The two persons have been arrested.

On examination of baggage and personal search of the passenger, who had arrived from Bangkok, hydroponic weed (Marijuana) weighing 9662 grams (having illicit market value Rs 9.662 crore) were recovered. The recovered goods were concealed in the checked in baggage of the passengers. The passenger was placed under arrest.

The Customs also arrested passengers arriving from Bangkok after it recovered wildlife - live and dead animals. These include Raccoon (Procyon Lotor), one alive and three dead, Black Fox Squirrel (Sciurus niger), three dead, andGreen Iguana (Iguana spp, 29 alive and eight dead, from the baggage of the passenger. Since the species are not indigenous to India, and for their better survival chances, these were handed over to the Airlines staff for deportation to Thailand.