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Tag: smuggling

  • 7 arrested in Bengaluru for smuggling endangered animals

    7 arrested in Bengaluru for smuggling endangered animals

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    Bengaluru: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has arrested seven passengers, including a woman, for allegedly smuggling 18 endangered animals in their baggage at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru a few days ago.

    Initially, three people were arrested. Their interrogation resulted in the arrest of four more people, the DRI said in a statement on Friday.

    The recovered animals include extremely rare and threatened species like the Yellow and Green Anaconda, Yellow Headed Amazon Parrot, Nile Monitor, Red Foot Tortoise, Iguanas, Ball Pythons, Alligator Gar, Yaki Monkey, Veiled Chameleon, Racoon Dog, White Headed Piones, etc. which were handed over to Bannerghatta Biological Park, according to the DRI.

    The passengers had arrived from Bangkok (Thailand) at the airport on January 22 when their baggage was checked following a tip-off and the animals were found in it, the DRI said.

    “Upon examination of their checked-in baggage, it resulted in the recovery of 18 non-indigenous animals (four primates and 14 reptiles) with the assistance of Karnataka Forest Department officials,” the statement said.

    The import of wild animals, including their parts and products as defined in the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 is prohibited.

    The quick follow-up action with the assistance of Forest Department officials and an officer from Chennai, resulted in the recovery of another 139 animals belonging to 48 different species, including 34 CITES-listed species from a farmhouse in Bengaluru used as a place of storage of similarly smuggled wildlife, the DRI said.

    “Those in possession of these animals neither had any documents of the wildlife items nor any filings under Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (Wildlife Division), Voluntary Disclosure Scheme till its extended deadline of March 2021 were available,” the statement read.

    However, evidence of financial transactions to source non-indigenous wildlife through the route of smuggling, transactions on WhatsApp, and other social media platforms have been unearthed, it added.

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    ( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

  • Indian sentenced in US for $3.5mn drug smuggling conspiracy

    Indian sentenced in US for $3.5mn drug smuggling conspiracy

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    New York: A 34 year-old Indian has been sentenced to 87 months in prison for operating a pharmacy that sold unapproved prescription drugs and controlled substances, including opioids, and shipped them from Asia into the US.

    The federal court in Boston ordered Manish Kumar ro pay a fine of $100,000 and sentenced him to more than seven years in prison and three months of supervised release, a statement by US attorney office, Massachusetts, said.

    Kumar was a partner in Mihu Business Solutions Pvt, Ltd — a Mumbai-based drug company which he operated through multiple entities, including “All Herb Distributors”, “365 Life Group”, and “Health Life 365 Co”.

    From at least 2015 until 2019, he used these entities to ship millions of illegal and unapproved prescription pills into the US to individuals who did not have prescriptions, the statement said.

    He trafficked prescription drugs, including generic erectile dysfunction drugs, and Schedule II controlled substances, such as hydrocodone, oxycodone and tapentadol, and Schedule IV controlled substances, such as tramadol.

    Kumar’s operation directly marketed drugs to customers in the US through advertising and calls to prospective customers from call centers in India.

    As part of the conspiracy, he personally directed and managed shipments of drugs from drug suppliers in Singapore and India into Massachusetts and other US states.

    In total, Kumar’s drug business generated more than $3.5 million in revenue and shipped millions of illegal and unapproved pills into the US to individuals who did not have prescriptions.

    After his arrest, Kumar made false statements to law enforcement in February 2020 about his involvement in the sale of controlled substances.

    In October 2022, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to import misbranded prescription drugs and controlled substances; conspiracy to distribute Schedule II and Schedule IV controlled substances; and one count of making false statements to federal officers.

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    ( With inputs from www.siasat.com )