Bid to smuggle drug through international courier in Tiruchy foiled; one held

TIRUCHY:  Sleuths of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Thursday busted a drug smuggling attempt made through a private courier service in Tiruchy.

Sources said the DRI was keeping an eye on operations of courier services and received a tip-off about an attempt to smuggle huge quantities of drugs through a courier operator in Srirangam. Intelligence agencies, in the early hours on Thursday, conducted a surprise inspection at an international courier office near the Srirangam railway station and caught a person who tried to send pseudoephedrine abroad.

According to sources, Nandakumar (39), a resident of Tiruchy, was caught with 5.6 kg of pseudoephedrine worth around Rs 1 crore in the international market. DRI produced him before a court and he was remanded in custody. Sources said the seized drug has high demand in Europe and South East Asian countries.

In 2018, the Narcotics Control Bureau caught an international passenger, who tried to smuggle about 10 kg of pseudoephedrine, at the international airport.

Sources said the DRI had busted similar attempts in the past and the recent incident has increased its vigil on international courier operators in Tiruchy.

In February this year, the Chennai Air Cargo Customs caught pseudoephedrine worth about `2.4 crore hidden inside an export consignment to Australia. Sources said that with multiple agencies and Customs remaining alert at airports, smugglers are trying out other routes.