Maldivian held at Kochi airport with 3.12 kg hashish
Customs officers arrested Maldivian Mohammed Sobah, 32, at Cochin International Airport on 5 March 2019 after finding 3.120 kg of hashish hidden in his check-in bag. He was due to fly to Male and allegedly planned to divert the drugs to Bahrain; an NDPS case was registered and sent to the Narcotics Control Bureau.
🇮🇳 Cochin International Airport, Nedumbassery, Kochi, Kerala · India
Customs officers held a Maldives national at Cochin International Airport at
Nedumbassery with hashish on Tuesday 5 March 2019.[1]The arrested man was
identified as 32-year-old Mohammed Sobah of GA Vilingili in the Maldives.[1]Sobah had arrived in Kochi three days earlier and was stopped as he was due to
depart for Male on Indigo 1787.[1]Airport screening flagged the checked-in
bags, a dog squad was used to sniff out the drugs, and physical checking found
hashish wrapped in plastic inside a false cavity in the bag.[1]
Officers weighed the hashish at 3.120 kg.[1]The New Indian Express estimated
the haul was worth around Rs 10 crore in the international market.[1]Maldives
Independent put the estimated street value at more than US$1 million.[2]Customs registered a Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act case and
referred further investigation to the Narcotics Control Bureau.[1]
Investigators said Sobah planned to divert the hashish to Bahrain from the
Maldives.[1]From initial interrogation, officers suspected he was part of a
drug cartel supplying banned narcotic products to Middle East countries.[1]Indian police accounts cited in the coverage described the Maldives and Sri
Lanka as transit hubs used to smuggle hashish oil onward to Europe and Latin
America.[2]
Photos and video
Hashish concealed in luggage shown in the photo published with the report. Photo: The Indian ExpressPhoto details
The two sources spell the surname's first name as Mohamed Sobah and Mohammed Sobah; this report uses the Indian Express spelling.
Maldives Independent rounds the weight to 3.2 kg while The New Indian Express gives 3.120 kg; the figures use the more precise 3.120 kg.
The value estimates differ by currency and market: about Rs 10 crore internationally and more than US$1 million street value; the figures record the Rs 10 crore estimate.
No charges, custody ruling or court outcome beyond the registered NDPS case and referral to the Narcotics Control Bureau were reported.
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