Seven foreign nationals were arrested by Customs department officials for allegedly trying to smuggle heroin worth ₹9.78 crore at the IGI airport.
The officials had received input that passengers carrying contraband would arrive at the airport through a Kandahar flight on November 16, read a statement issued on Tuesday. A team at the IGI airport was alerted and they detained seven Afghan nationals who were exhibiting suspicious movements.
The suspects were taken to Safdarjung Hospital where doctors extracted 214 capsules, containing 1.95 kg of heroin, from their bodies, said a senior officer. “Medical examination of the passengers resulted in the recovery of drugs valued at ₹9.78 crore, which were ingested/swallowed by them,” read the statement.
A senior officer said that the accused are likely part of a drug cartel.
Authorities are trying to find the local connections of the accused in order to identify and arrest other nodes of the syndicate. In September, five Afghan nationals were arrested for smuggling heroin worth ₹15 crore using the same modus operandi.
