14kg heroin, worth ₹98 crore, seized in massive drug haul at IGI Airport

Shaukat Ali Nurvi, joint commissioner of Customs (Delhi airport), put the estimated value of the recovered drugs at ₹98 crore.

Customs officers at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International airport on Wednesday arrested two people from Zambia, and recovered 14kg heroin estimated to be worth ₹98 crore that they were allegedly trying to smuggle into the country.

The seized heroin. (HT Photo)

Senior customs officers privy to the operation said this was one of the biggest seizures in recent years, and added that they were probing the role of a “large syndicate” in the operation.

The officers said they had a tip-off, and the two passengers, a man and a woman, who arrived in Delhi in a Qatar Airways flight from Johannesburg via Doha early on Wednesday, were intercepted as soon as they crossed the Green Channel (nothing to declare) at Terminal 3.

“Initially, they denied if they were carrying anything objectionable. They were then screened through a door frame metal detector (DFMD) which did not detect anything prohibited. Their bags were checked through an X-ray scanner, and some suspicious items were spotted. When the bags were opened, two packets, each about 7kg containing a white powder, were recovered from their bags,” said a senior customs officer who asked not to be named.

A second officer aware of the matter said they are investigating the source of the drugs, and the person to whom the packages were to be delivered. “It is one of the biggest drug hauls at Delhi airport. Role of a bigger syndicate behind the attempted smuggling cannot be ruled out. We are looking at the past involvement of the two persons,” the officer cited above.

Shaukat Ali Nurvi, joint commissioner of Customs (Delhi airport), put the estimated value of the recovered drugs at ₹98 crore.

“During questioning, the two have admitted to smuggling narcotics. The recovered goods were seized under relevant sections, and both the passengers have been arrested. Further investigation in the matter is under progress,” Nurvi said.