Gujarat ATS seizes 22 kg of analgesic drug concealed as aloe vera powder at Mumbai airport

Gujarat ATS seizes 22 kg of analgesic drug concealed as aloe vera powder at Mumbai airport

Ahmedabad, The Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad has seized 22 kg of analgesic drug etomidate disguised as aloe vera powder at Mumbai airport while it was being exported illegally to Malaysia through air cargo, officials said on Tuesday.

Gujarat ATS seizes 22 kg of analgesic drug concealed as aloe vera powder at Mumbai airport

The seizure comes days after the ATS arrested three persons in this connection.

Etomidate, a short-acting anaesthetic, is increasingly being misused for recreational purposes. Its rapid dissociative effects and minimal cardiorespiratory suppression appeal to adolescents, especially when repackaged into e-liquids that enable inconspicuous vaping, according to The Lancet journal website.

The drug was sold in foreign markets at an estimated USD 4,000 to 5,000 per kilogram, the ATS said.

Three persons Nikunj Gadhiya, Chetan Vavadiya and Bhautik Padmani, all residents of Surat were arrested on Sunday following an input that some individuals were exporting the analgesic drug to countries in Southeast Asia, where the substance is treated as a narcotic or psychotropic substance under local laws, it said.

"During search and inspection at the offices of companies of the three accused, purchase bills of etomidate and stock registers were examined, which confirmed that they were mislabelling and misdeclaring etomidate and exporting it to foreign countries," the ATS said in a statement.

Further, on questioning Gadhiya, it came to light that on February 28, he had arranged to send six parcels with a total weight of 25.5 kilograms, out of which 22 kg was etomidate, to Malaysia through air cargo, it said.

These parcels were examined in Mumbai by police using a spectrograph drug detector kit, which confirmed the presence of etomidate and the drug was seized. The said parcels had been misdeclared and mislabelled as aloe vera powder samples before being sent, it added.

The ATS had earlier said the three accused exported the drug through air cargo from Mumbai airport by preparing fake bills, mislabelling the product and submitting forged customs clearance documents.

Gadhiya had exported around 50 kg of etomidate by disguising it as aloe vera powder. Vavadiya sent nearly 50 kg of the drug by labelling it as "Ginopol-24 powder", a personal care ingredient, to Malaysia and Thailand, while Padmani is accused of exporting 25 kg of etomidate by mislabelling it as aloe vera powder, it said.

The etomidate powder sent to Thailand was seized by the police there, an ATS release said.

Etomidate powder is treated as a controlled or prohibited substance in several countries. In Thailand, it is classified as a Schedule II substance under the Psychotropic Substances Act, while in Malaysia, it is listed as a Group B drug under the Poisons Act. In Singapore, it falls under Class C drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

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