Ganja hidden in false compartments of trolley bags; 2 held at Bengaluru airport
BENGALURU: Customs officials at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) uncovered an unusual modus operandi to smuggle hydroponic ganja this week.
In two separate cases, passengers were found concealing the banned substance inside specially created false compartments in their trolley bags.
The first seizure, involving a passenger arriving from Bangkok, was reported on Monday. Ritesh Vijay Thadani, a 30-year-old Mumbai resident, was found carrying 2.9 kg of ganja concealed inside a false compartment in his trolley suitcase.
Officials said the bag was part of Thadani's check-in luggage deposited at Bangkok airport. The substance was recovered from sealed plastic bags.
The seized ganja is estimated to be worth Rs 1 crore, according to approved valuation guidelines.
A day later, on Tuesday, another passenger was caught using a similar method to smuggle the banned substance. Rahul Kumar, a Bihar resident, was intercepted while attempting to exit Terminal 2 of KIA with 3 kg of hydroponic ganja.
In his case, officials said the substance had been concealed in vacuum-sealed pockets to minimise the space it occupied.
The seized ganja is estimated to be worth Rs 1.05 crore. Both Rahul Kumar and Thadani were arrested by Customs under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.
In two separate cases, passengers were found concealing the banned substance inside specially created false compartments in their trolley bags.
The first seizure, involving a passenger arriving from Bangkok, was reported on Monday. Ritesh Vijay Thadani, a 30-year-old Mumbai resident, was found carrying 2.9 kg of ganja concealed inside a false compartment in his trolley suitcase.
Officials said the bag was part of Thadani's check-in luggage deposited at Bangkok airport. The substance was recovered from sealed plastic bags.
The seized ganja is estimated to be worth Rs 1 crore, according to approved valuation guidelines.
A day later, on Tuesday, another passenger was caught using a similar method to smuggle the banned substance. Rahul Kumar, a Bihar resident, was intercepted while attempting to exit Terminal 2 of KIA with 3 kg of hydroponic ganja.
In his case, officials said the substance had been concealed in vacuum-sealed pockets to minimise the space it occupied.
The seized ganja is estimated to be worth Rs 1.05 crore. Both Rahul Kumar and Thadani were arrested by Customs under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.
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