An NCB officer claimed on Monday that the Mumbai Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) effectively delivered a blow to the worldwide drug gang by seizing two kilograms of cocaine worth Rs 20 crore from a Zambian national in a Mumbai hotel.

The NCB also detained two people, one a Tanzanian woman who was supposed to collect the shipment.

To combat drug trafficking during the holiday season, intelligence was gathered and it was discovered that a notorious international criminal syndicate had devised a plot to transport cocaine into India. Urgent effort resulted in the identification of the drug carrier, LA Gilmore, a Zambian national.

Further inquiry led to the identification of Gilmore's details, and it was soon learned that he was to stay at a Mumbai-based hotel.

Two pouches of cocaine were discovered

An immediate team of NCB Mumbai officials headed to the hotel to conduct surveillance. Gilmore was found to have booked into the hotel on November 9. "After a short while, he was intercepted and a search was conducted. Though initially no suspicious items were recovered from his belongings, a closer examination of the carry bag itself led to the identification of abnormalities along the bag layerings. When it was cut open, two packets were recovered from the bag which contained cocaine weighing two kilograms," the official stated.

Gilmore had travelled to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, and Lusaka, Zambia for the narcotics shipment.

During questioning, the individual indicated some drug trafficking middlemen in the area. Gilmore was witnessed being directed by a handler during the investigation. The NCB squad then carefully watched Gilmore's conversation with his handler, who instructed him to travel to Delhi to deliver the medicine.

On November 11, they apprehended MR Augustino, a Tanzanian woman who was supposed to collect the pills from Gilmore. Both have been taken into the custody of the Mumbai for further investigation. During the investigation, the syndicate's worldwide network was discovered to be extended over numerous locations, including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, and Goa, he said.

Both suspects were taken into the custody of the Mumbai Narcotics Control Bureau for further questioning.

It is worth noting that as the holiday season approaches, the demand for cocaine and other high-end party drugs has skyrocketed. The timed blow to this illegal drug trafficking circuit has convincingly made inroads inside narcotics syndicates.

You might also be intersted in - Biggest drug haul in 2 decades: NCB cracks pan-India drug network that used dark net, cryptocurrency