DRI seizes cocaine worth ₹11.25 crore at Mumbai Airport, four arrested

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized 2.25 kg of cocaine worth ₹11.25 crore and arrested four foreign nationals at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport over the past four days, officials confirmed on Saturday. Acting on intelligence, the DRI executed two separate operations.

On Friday, a male and a female passenger arriving from Addis Ababa were intercepted. During questioning, both confessed to swallowing capsules packed with narcotics. They were admitted to a state-run hospital, where 84 capsules containing 1.40 kg of cocaine were retrieved.

Earlier on Tuesday, the agency intercepted another African man and woman arriving from Addis Ababa. Officials recovered 63 purged capsules containing 850 grams of cocaine, valued at ₹4.25 crore. Efforts to track down the syndicate's domestic operatives are ongoing.

Last week, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has seized 2.659 kg of cocaine, valued at roughly ₹13.295 crore, during two separate operations at Mumbai Airport, arresting two individuals under the NDPS Act.

Acting on precise intelligence, DRI officials intercepted a female passenger arriving from Addis Ababa and recovered 1.575 kg of liquid cocaine worth approximately ₹7.875 crore. A search of her baggage revealed eight pouches containing the concealed liquid contraband.

In a concurrent operation, an African male passenger was intercepted upon landing. Suspected of body-packing, the traveler subsequently purged 70 ingested capsules containing 1.084 kg of cocaine, worth ₹5.42 crore on the black market. The narcotics were confiscated under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and both suspects were placed under arrest.

The DRI remains steadfast in its resolve to build a Nasha Mukt Bharat, relentlessly intercepting narcotics, dismantling international syndicates, and safeguarding national security.

Indian-origin man among five jailed for 84 years in UK drug plot

An Indian-origin man is among five gang members jailed in the United Kingdom for a combined total of 84 years for their roles in a massive narcotics conspiracy, according to the Metropolitan Police.

Jagjit Singh, a 30-year-old Birmingham resident, received a sentence of 10 years and six months for operating within an organized crime syndicate that smuggled and distributed millions of pounds worth of Class A drugs into London. The extensive police investigation netted over 300 kilograms of cocaine and more than 60 kilograms of heroin, carrying an estimated wholesale value of nearly 8 million pounds.

The cartel members were sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on Thursday, receiving terms between 14 and 26 years. Singh had entered a guilty plea on the opening day of his trial last October.

"This case has centred on a criminal venture planned on a gigantic commercial scale which would have likely caused violence and destruction on our streets," said Detective Constable Leon Ure from the Met Police's Specialist Crime unit, who led the investigation.

"These offenders organised a significant drug line into London and the surrounding counties over a prolonged period of time. If people wonder why we are so relentless in going after those involved in drug supply, it's because this criminality fuels violence and rips families and communities apart," he said.