Customs arrest 4 on drug charges

The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) of Customs arrested four people, including two foreigners and an Air India (AI) employee, late on Wednesday for allegedly trying to smuggle 52kg of hashish worth Rs2.61 crore from Mumbai to Amsterdam. A Customs source said Leandro Pinneiro, 28, Titania Bolomey, 30, Kalpana Kutur, 38, and Elais Herman, 45, were charged under provisions of the Narcotics Drugs & Psychotropic Substances Act.

They were remanded in judicial custody until Friday. Pinneiro carries a Brazilian passport while Bolomey has a French passport. Kutur is an AI telephone operator and Herman is her acquaintance.

AIU officials informed AI security personnel on Wednesday at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport that they suspected two foreigners headed to Amsterdam were carrying drugs in their luggage. They intercepted Pinneiro and Bolomey and retrieved the hashish.

During interrogation, the duo said that they were promised 5,000 euros each. Kutur and Herman assisted them in dodging airport security.