Cops search Cordelia cruise again after hoax email on Russian carrying drugs aboard

Mumbai police searched the Cordelia Cruise after receiving an email claiming a Russian national part of a drug syndicate will be on board with contraband.

Mumbai: Over one and half years after actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) from Cordelia Cruise ship at Green Gate terminal, the Mumbai police on Saturday searched the ship yet again after receiving an anonymous email claiming that a Russian national, who is part of a drug syndicate, will be aboard with contraband.

The Cordelia cruise ship sails from Mumbai Terminal to Goa on the weekend and returns on Monday afternoon.

A police officer said, “A team from the Yellow Gate police station visited Green Gate terminal and checked the guest list but the person with the name mentioned in the email was not on the ship. A diary entry has been made. To ensure incidents like the 2021 drug bust do not repeat, a police team was sent immediately. However, nothing was found.”

Confirming the incident, a senior IPS officer said based on the email the police immediately alerted the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) which handles security at the Green Gate terminal. “We wrote a letter to the CISF and the email was also forwarded to them so they could investigate the matter. The NCB was also marked in the email so that they can also keep a vigilance,” the officer added.

Read: Never directed Wankhede on conduct of Cordelia cruise drug bust probe: NCB officer

However, Satyanarayan Chaudhary, joint commissioner (law and order), said he was not aware of any email received by the police.

“After the Cordelia cruise drug bust case, we often keep vigilance and conduct checks to prevent anyone from carrying contraband while visiting the ship,” said an official from the Yellow Gate police station.

Meanwhile, the Mumbai police’s cyber team has been trying to get details from where the email originated.

Another police officer said they will recheck and search the ship along with CISF officials once the ship docks at Mumbai after returning from Goa on Monday.

This is the same ship which the NCB raided on October 2, 2021 and arrested 20 people, including Aryan Khan. The cruise ship sails from Mumbai Terminal to Goa on the weekend and returns on Monday afternoon. While booking the cruise ticket the travellers who are foreigners need to make sure they are carrying a valid passport and the same is valid through at least 6 months from the travel date. Indian travellers required any valid ID proof—PAN card, Aadhaar card, Voter’s ID, passport or driving licence.