IGI: Drugs hidden in bedsheets seized

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence and the customs department seized around 20.6 kg of synthetic drugs hidden in 34 bedsheets at IGI Airport’s cargo area on Thursday. The seized drug, identified as Amphetamine, was to be smuggled from Uttrakhand to Zambia.

Sources said at about 3.30 pm on Thursday, some suspicious items were noticed by the Celebi screener in a cargo consignment booked by a company based in Rudrapur, Uttrakhand, to a consignee based in Lusaka, Zambia, on Ethiopian Airlines flight number ET-689. The Celebi staff then informed customs department’s SIIB (special investigation and intelligence) team which reached the spot and checked the consignment.

“They found a total of 34 bedsheets in two packets and each had one white powder-type item kept inside a polybag and pasted and hidden inside the bedsheet. After conducting tests, the SIIB officials declared the powder as Amphetamine weighing approximately 20.6 kg. The SIIB and DRI team seized the drugs and kept it in the strong room of Celebi Export shed. The matter is further being investigated by the SIIB and DRI team,” said the sources.

Amphetamine is a central nervous system stimulant that affects chemicals in the brain and nerves that contribute to hyperactivity and impulse control.

In March 2013, Ketamine worth Rs 26 lakh, which was to be smuggled out of the country as a courier consignment, was seized by customs officials from the cargo terminal of the IGI Airport. About 2.6 kg of Ketamine was kept in cartons of readymade garments to be shipped to Indonesia via the cargo terminal. The consignment was booked by a Chennai-resident.