Customs officials bust drug racket

Customs officials at Kempegowda International Airport seized 12.9 kg of the banned drug methaqualone on Wednesday. Its value in the international market is around Rs. 6.45 crore.

According to Customs officials, the consignment was to be shipped to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia by an export firm based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The goods were declared as 'palm sugar' for personal use, with a declared value of Rs. 6,000. Methaqualone is a sedative and hypnotic medication.

Officials believe that the consignment is part of an international drug racket.

Drugs concealed in packets of palm sugar

The drugs were packed in plastic packets, which were inserted in larger packets of palm sugar. Officials of the Courier Section of Air Cargo detected the drugs while assessing the consignment.

Acting on a hunch that something was not quite right with the consignment, they opened a few packets and found smaller pouches within filled with a white crystalline powder, which was later identified as methaqualone.

The consignment was booked by the exporter through a courier service in Chennai and sent to the Bengaluru hub for shipment to Kuala Lumpur.

In the first week of January 2018, ketamine worth over Rs. 1 crore, hidden in sweet packages, was seized. That consignment, too, was marked for Kuala Lumpur, by an exporter in Chennai.

“There are glaring similarities in the two cases. In both cases, the courier company is the same. The Customs Intelligence Unit of Bangalore Air Cargo is investigating the case,” an official said.