The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the USA which had brought down many Colombian and Mexican narcotics syndicates like Medellin cartel founded by Pablo Escobar, Cali Cartel, Sinaloa Cartel, Tijuana Cartel, and others will focus on sharing narcotics intelligence with India. This, officials stated, would be in addition to a joint mechanism to trace and disrupt the money-laundering rings related to worldwide drug smuggling networks with India’s lead anti-drugs enforcement agency Narcotics Management Bureau (NCB).

Virtual assets sometimes related to transnational criminal organizations will be of significant interest to either side. This November, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence busted an international racket of drug smuggling. DRI had seized 504 grams of cocaine sent by courier from Trinidad and Tobago to Mumbai, skillfully concealed in a steam press iron. The elaborate operation was codenamed as ‘Operation Calypso’ which was spread out over 3 days.

DRI Mumbai had received intelligence input from a reliable source about cocaine being smuggled to Mumbai, concealed in a package of steam iron originating in Trinidad and Tobago. DRI Officers immediately swung into action. The address declared on the courier packet appeared suspicious as found out during verification by DRI Officers. DRI first intercepted the consignment and ascertained the presence of cocaine.

DRI then apprehended a lady who came to take delivery of the consignment on November 17 evening. After a brief grilling, DRI learnt that the package containing the contraband was to be delivered to an African national based in Navi Mumbai. By November 19, the case was more or less conclusively wrapped up.

A total of 4 individuals including 2 Indian women and 2 African nationals have been arrested in this case so far. Investigations till now have revealed that this syndicate had cleared multiple consignments of cocaine in the past and that the total quantity of cocaine smuggled by the same modus operandi was over 3.3 Kgs since August 2020 itself, having a market value of over Rs. 20 Crores. This operation carried out by DRI has thrown up a sophisticated cartel of international drug smugglers.

Directorate of Revenue Intelligence recently arrested another woman flier, Ellena Kasakatira, 43, allegedly carrying cocaine worth ₹6 crores at the Mumbai airport. The woman, a citizen of Malawi, an eastern African country, had arrived from Addis Ababa to Mumbai via Dubai.

A senior DRI official said that officials from the Mumbai zonal unit had received specific intelligence about the woman. She was carrying a trolley bag, which was examined under the provisions of the NDPS Act, 1985. The official said,” During the examination, two packages wrapped in black carbon paper were found concealed in the special cavity made in the bag. On examination, each package was found to contain 500gm of cocaine.”

Kasakatira was arrested under relevant sections of NDPS Act, 1985 for possession of drugs and was subsequently produced before the additional chief metropolitan magistrate, Esplanade, Mumbai. She has been remanded in judicial custody up to December 7.

DRI officials said that they have observed a change in modus operandi adopted by the drug mules, from body concealment to meticulous baggage concealment, which throws newer challenges to law enforcement agencies. DRI officials added that this was the second cocaine seizure within a week. Earlier, the agency had seized 502gm of cocaine which was shipped to India in a parcel, and had arrested four persons.

Officials stated that POTUS and the Indian PM had agreed to a brand new CNWG that might enhance cooperation in opposition to illicit drugs and artificial opioids. An official demanding anonymity stated, “The thought is to boost the present relationship between related Indian and US drug and legislation enforcement agencies by means of extra common and structured dialogue and sensible cooperation. This is a must fight the worldwide manufacturing, advertising, motion, and financing related to illicit drugs and precursors.”

The congregation is a part of the Indo-US Counter-Narcotics Working Group (CNWG), which was envisaged throughout President Donald Trump’s visit to New Delhi in February this year. It will even dwell upon a bilateral counter-narcotics technique and sharing of intelligence between either side.

Aside from DEA, the Division of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), Division of Justice (DOJ), FBI, Division of Homeland Security (DHS), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS) are likely to participate in the CNWG. From India, NCB, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Enforcement Directorate (ED), Ministry of Health, Division of Revenue, MoF, and Ministry of Exterior Affairs (MEA) shall be a part of the digital meet.

DEA will share with India the different present tendencies on artificial opioids and their precursors’ manufacturing and trafficking in South Asia. It would additionally work to focus on avenues to extend info sharing to halt the manufacturing and trafficking of fentanyl, associated analogues, and its precursors, together with different artificial drugs. Fentanyl is an opioid used as a pain medication and its elevated smuggling has made agencies apprehensive.

Another officer stated that the two sides will also update each other on domestic laws and regulations and discuss establishing public-private partnerships for monitoring online drug and precursors’ trade as well as public-private liaisons between regulatory authorities and producers of precursor-chemicals.

The NCB has recently started a campaign to crack down on drug smuggling networks across the country and will also start cracking down on the drug network in Bollywood. It has identified several syndicates which operate from different parts of the country. In fact, the agency has estimated that the heroin business in India is worth around Rs1,44,000 crore (approximately 19 billion US dollars) and that there are around 20 lakh dependent users of this high drug in the country.

The author is a student member of Amity Centre of Happiness