KOCHI: Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has intercepted a Kenyan national for smuggling cocaine worth Rs 6.68 crore at Nedumbassery airport. The arrested person is Karanja Michael Nganga, a Kenyan national, who arrived from Ethiopia via Muscat at Nedumbassery last week.
As many as 50 capsules containing 668 grams of high-quality cocaine were recovered by the DRI team from Karanja. Following concrete information, the accused was intercepted on his arrival at the airport. However, no drugs could be found following an inspection. Then, DRI officials decided to carry out an X-ray screening of Karanja at the Little Flower Hospital in Angamaly. The test turned positive and a large number of capsules were found in his abdomen.
Later the accused was admitted to Apollo Adlux Hospital in Angamaly for extraction of drugs from the body.
“It was after a week-long effort under the supervision of doctors that 50 capsules were recovered and on testing it was found that they contained cocaine. The total quantity of seized cocaine is 668 grams. It is price of around Rs 6.68 crore in the international market,” sources said.
Karanja was produced before a magistrate court in Angamaly on Friday night and remanded in judicial custody. DRI will approach the court seeking the custody of the accused next week.
“The arrested person is a carrier working for an international drug cartel. It seems the drug was to be taken to other cities in the country. We have started a probe into the source and final destination of the drugs. The accused has to be interrogated in this regard,” sources said.