The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Nagpur, on Sunday seized 3.07 kg of Amphetamine type substance’, valued at more than Rs 24 crore, from a passenger at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport, Nagpur. The passenger, an Indian national, had arrived here from Nairobi, Kenya through Sharjah, UAE. As the investigation is going on, authorities did not disclose the name of the passenger. It is a first case of authorities seizing ‘Amphetamine type substance’ from a passenger arriving at the Nagpur airport. The passenger arrived at the airport in Air Arabia Flight No G9-415 from Sharjah. He had ingeniously concealed the contraband in a hollow metal roller packed in a rectangular carton box kept in his personal baggage. The authorities seized the contraband based on specific intelligence. Soon after the passenger was caught, the authorities tested the seized substances and found that it was ‘Amphetamine type substance’, a narcotic drug.

 

Amphetamine is a psychotropic substance covered under Schedule I of the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Act, 1985, trade of which is prohibited. The passenger was arrested and remanded to DRI custody by the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Nagpur. In a swift follow up, the officers also arrested a Nigerian national, the intended recipient of the contraband, from Subhash Nagar area of West Delhi on Monday. Seizure of such a significant quantity of Amphetamine type substance, a highly addictive stimulant drug, from small airports like Nagpur indicates that newer places and methods are being adopted by syndicates involved in this illegal activity. Recently the DRI Nagpur had also arrested one person in connection with smuggling gold weighing 743.56 gram worth approximately Rs 44 lakh at Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport.

 

The drug haul has upped the ante of various agencies in the city as it indicates new approach on part of smugglers tapping into Tier-II cities to push the contraband. Amphetamine is well-known drug used in big metros, and hence its seizure at Sonegaon airport has alarmed the police agencies. They are trying to figure out the reason. So far, the city police had been successfully seizing MD (mephedrone) and ganja and very small quantity of heroin, which too quite rarely. Therefore, reports of attempts to push in Amphetamine indicates that small cities are being tapped by international drug cartels as the vigil at airports in metro cities has increased off late.