Mumbai: Man detained for trying to smuggle diamonds worth Rs 2 cr

The accused was caught at Mumbai airport while awaiting a connecting flight to Bangkok

The Air Intelligence Unit apprehended one individual at Mumbai airport who was attempting to smuggle diamonds worth Rs 2 crore to Bangkok. The accused concealed the diamonds in a pack of noodles and was supposed to take the diamonds to Bangkok but the police caught him.

The matter came to light on April 19. "Acting on a tip-off, we had received information that the accused would be coming to Mumbai. He was acting suspiciously and hence we questioned him, checked his luggage bag, and found diamonds which were concealed in a pack of noodles," said the police.

The accused had boarded a flight from Bengaluru and had landed in Mumbai and was supposed to board a connecting flight to Bangkok. "The accused confessed that he had boarded a flight from Bengaluru and then he came to Mumbai to catch a flight for Bangkok. He was supposed to hand over the diamonds to someone in Bangkok," said the police.

According to the police, the accused is not the only one involved in this syndicate and was the middleman. "During interrogation, he had confessed that he was going to deliver the diamonds in Bangkok and he was just the delivery boy. He was going to get a commission for the delivery and hence he decided to get involved in the crime. We are also going to investigate whether he was involved in a similar case before," said the police.

The police arrested him on April 19, presented him to Esplanade court, and sought 14 days custody. "We wanted to interrogate the accused and apprehend the others involved in the crime and also apprehend the kingpin of this racket," said the police. The police had identified the accused as Sayeed Jafar, 28, a resident of Alipura, Karnataka. Jafar has been booked under the relevant sections of the Customs Act.

28
Age of the accused