Mega cocaine bust at Chennai airport; two arrested

CHENNAI: The Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and Chennai Customs busted an international cocaine smuggling syndicate and seized 5.6kg of the drug, worth about Rs 56 crore in the international market, at the Chennai airport on Monday.

Two Indian nationals — Himanshu Shah, 25, of Bageshwar District in Uttarakhand and Sahil Attri, 26, of Chamba district in Himachal Pradesh — arriving from Addis Ababa by Ethiopian Airlines were arrested.The NCB officials, who have detained a Nigerian national and another suspect from Mumbai, withheld their identity as they plan to narrow down on a few more suspects involved in the racket.Officials said that following a tip-off, the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) intercepted the two Indian passengers and did a spot profiling and scanned their baggage.

The cocaine capsules were wrapped as shining chocolates of an international brand and kept in gold-plated cans and boxes. The contraband has since been handed over to the NCB’s Chennai zonal unit for further action.

During interrogation, the accused revealed links to a larger trafficking network. Based on these inputs, NCB arrested an Indian national in Mumbai and later nabbed a Nigerian in Delhi. Investigators said the syndicate operated across multiple cities and used Chennai airport as a transit point.

“While the duo nabbed at Chennai airport were couriers, the Nigerian was in India on a tourist visa,” said an officer.The seizure follows a similar joint operation on Aug 23, when Chennai Customs and NCB recovered 2kg of cocaine valued at Rs20 crore from a Nigerian woman at Chennai airport. Officials said the repeated seizures are an indication that Chennai airport is a preferred hub for international drug cartels.ADGP (cybercrime) Sandeep Mittal cautioned citizens to stay alert against drug-related activities and highlighted the govt’s Nasha Mukt Bharat Abhiyan aimed at promoting a drug-free India.Director-general of police G Venkataraman commended the sleuths involved in the operation.NCB said investigations were under way to trace the wider financial links and identify other members of the syndicate.