Mumbai airport bust: Customs seize hydroponic weed worth Rs 13.92 crore, arrest four

The seized drugs weighed nearly 14 kg. Representational pic/iStock

The Mumbai Customs department officials arrested four passengers at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport and seized hydroponic weed (cannabis) worth Rs 13.92 crore on Friday.

The arrested passengers arrived separately in pairs via two different airlines. Pravinkumar Singh and Suraj Upadhyay arrived at the airport from Bangkok on an Air India flight, while Shivam Yadav and Mayank Dixit arrived a few minutes later on an Indigo flight, also from Bangkok.

All four were carrying trolley bags, which, upon inspection, revealed transparent plastic packets hidden beneath layers of clothes. The packets contained the flowering tops of a plant, identified as hydroponic weed, also known as cannabis.

In the remand copy of the accused, customs officials stated, "The accused were aware that smuggling hydroponic weed and other illegal narcotic drugs into India attracts stringent punishment. However, they were lured by the promise of quick and easy money in exchange for smuggling the contraband into India."