Man with synthetic diamonds worth ₹4.93 cr held at CSMIA

The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel deployed at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) apprehended a passenger on Wednesday who was trying to smuggle synthetic diamonds worth around ₹4.93 crore to Bangkok.

MUMBAI: The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel deployed at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) apprehended a passenger on Wednesday who was trying to smuggle synthetic diamonds worth around ₹4.93 crore to Bangkok.

Man with synthetic diamonds worth ₹4.93 cr held at CSMIA

According to a release issued by the CISF, around 1:18am, an Indian passenger, Bharatbhai Govindbhai Nathani, reported at Terminal 2 to board a NOK Airlines flight to Bangkok scheduled to depart at 2:50am.

After completing the required check-in formalities, he proceeded to the security screening area with his hand baggage. During the screening of his laptop bag, CISF screener Subodh Kumar observed a suspicious image on the X-BIS machine. On closer scrutiny, it was noticed that the battery compartment of the laptop appeared to contain an unidentified foreign object. Based on the passenger’s profiling and the suspicious image, the bag was flagged for further examination.

Senior inspector Meena Mukesh Kumar, assigned for physical checks, conducted a thorough inspection of the bag, leading to the recovery of concealed synthetic diamonds hidden inside the laptop battery compartment, kept in 26 small transparent plastic pouches.

The passenger, along with the recovered synthetic diamonds, was immediately handed over to the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of the Customs deployed at the airport for further investigation.

As per the AIU Customs officials, the total weight of the synthetic diamonds was 2147.20 carats, with an estimated market value of ₹4.93 crore.