3 held for smuggling whale vomit worth ₹7 crore in Gujarat

The police recovered from them 5.35 kg of the ambergris valued at around ₹7 crore in the international market.

Police have arrested three persons for allegedly smuggling ambergris, or whale puke which used in making cosmetics, worth about ₹7 crore, police said on Sunday. Ambergis is a waxy substance produced in the intestines of sperm whales. According to police, the three men were apprehended on Saturday after they brought the expensive substance from Junagadh for a client in Ahmedabad.

The accused were booked under provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act after the forensic team said that prima facie, the product found in their possession was ambergris. (ambergris.co.nz)

The police recovered from them 5.35 kg of the ambergris valued at around ₹7 crore in the international market, they said. "We have arrested three persons for smuggling 5.35 kg ambergris. They are part of a network in which so far 10 people are suspected to be involved. Further investigation into the case is underway," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone VII) Premsukh Delu said.

The accused were booked under provisions of the Wildlife (Protection) Act after the forensic team said that prima facie, the product found in their possession was ambergris, he said. The accused were identified as Sharin Cheda (from Junagadh), Khalid Ofi (from Bhavnagar) and Sumer Soni (from Udaipur in Rajasthan), he said. The accused procured the product from Junagadh and came to Ahmedabad to deliver it to someone whom the police have identified, he added.