Customs officers at Mumbai Airport seized suspected narcotics weighing 50.116 kg, valued at Rs 50.116 crore, in two separate cases, along with diamonds weighing 551.10 carats, valued at Rs 93.85 lakh, and 2.073 kg of contraband gold provisionally valued at Rs 1.549 crore in another three cases. The seizures led to the arrest of eight passengers at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) on Thursday and Friday.

On the basis of spot profiling, customs officers intercepted two passengers arriving from Riyadh and Muscat, respectively, and recovered 24-karat gold rods and 24-karat gold dust in wax, with a total net weight of 863 grams, provisionally valued at Rs 64.50 lakh. These items were ingeniously concealed in spanners in the baggage of one passenger, while the gold dust was hidden inside the body cavity of another passenger.

In another case, acting on specific input, customs sleuths intercepted a passenger departing for Bangkok. A search led to the seizure of 551.10 carat diamonds, valued at Rs 93.85 lakh, concealed inside the body cavity of the passenger.

A batch of five passengers arriving from Bangkok were intercepted, resulting in the seizure of 50.116 kg of suspected Hydroponic Weed (Marijuana), worth Rs 50.116 crore. The weed was concealed inside vacuum-sealed transparent plastic packets and stored in the trolley bags of the passengers.

In the fifth case, two passengers arriving from Dubai were intercepted, leading to the seizure of 24-karat gold dust in wax, weighing 1.210 kg, provisionally valued at Rs 90.42 lakh, which was concealed inside the body cavity of the passengers.

All eight accused passengers were arrested under the provisions of the Customs Act and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.