KOCHI: The DRI officers on Wednesday seized 55 kg of ephedrine worth over Rs 1 crore in the Indian market from an aircraft at Kochi airport. According to officers, the consignment carrying ephedrine, a controlled medication and stimulant used to make amphetamines and methamphetamine, was loaded into an aircraft bound for Kuala Lumpur after routine security clearance.
Though the consignment was given security clearance, the DRI officers got a tip-off on the presence of the contraband. On examining the bags, the sleuths found 60 of them contained ephedrine. The smugglers had concealed the powder inside the bag, said officers.In the probe, it was found a Chennai-based export firm brought the consignment involving ephedrine powder which is used for manufacturing mephedrone powder, also known as a party drug, to the airport.
The sleuths are investigating whether the consignment has any Kochi connection. The seized contraband was presented before a local court in Angamali in the evening. It is the third seizure of ephedrine from Kochi airport in recent times. Earlier, the Customs officers had arrested a 46-year-old South African woman for possessing 14 kg of white ephedrine powder at Kochi airport in 2015. A Zimbabwean woman, Cellia Dhomingo, was arrested at Kochi airport for trying to smuggle around 20 kg of ephedrine.