24 kg of hydroponic weed, shark fins seized at airport

CHENNAI: In three separate incidents, Chennai Customs seized almost 12 kg of hydroponic weed worth Rs 12 crore and 11.6 kg of shark fins from passengers at the citys international airport, an official release on Thursday said. In two cases detected early on Thursday morning, customs officers seized 3,966 gm and 7.896 gm hydroponic weed respectively from the check-in luggage of two passengers who arrived from Thailand on the Thai Airways TG 337 flight. The contraband was concealed in vacuum-sealed packets. Both passengers, Indian nationals, were arrested. They admitted that they were recruited by a person in Thailand for smuggling the contraband for a monetary compensation. In the third case, the Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Chennai Customs intercepted two Indian male passengers who were bound for Singapore from Chennai on Air India flight AI-348. Upon examination of their checked-in baggage, a total of 11.6 kilogrammes of shark fin was recovered (5.8 kg from each passenger). The wildlife inspector from the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau certified the recovered items as shark fins. During interrogation, the passengers admitted they were recruited by an individual who had promised them money for transporting the contraband from Chennai to Singapore. Export of shark fin of all species is prohibited under the Foreign Trade Policy, and the contraband was seized under the provisions of the Customs Act, 1962.