Mumbai, Mar 26: The Air Intelligence Unit (AIU) officials arrested a South African schoolteacher at Mumbai airport for attempting to smuggle out 7kg of drugs concealed in school bags on Monday morning. The consignment is worth Rs 7 crore.
Around 5.30am, Blantinah Makoti (35) entered the Mumbai airport to board an Ethiopian Airline flight for Mozambique. The AIU officials had got a tip-off about the woman. When Makoti was about to check-in, the officials intercepted her, and sent her bags for a check.
AIU officers said that a search revealed that she had stuffed methamphetamine in the tops of the 14 empty school bags in her baggage. "All school bags had hard tops. The cardboard filling from the top was removed to stuff the drug," said an AIU officer. Each bag had 500gm drug. Makoti was arrested immediately.
In her statement to the AIU, Makoti said that she is a South African schoolteacher, and has three children.
Makoti reportedly told the officers that a friend had given her the baggage in Delhi. "She had landed in Mumbai in the first week of March and travelled to Delhi. She has given the name of the person who gave her the bag and we are trying to track him," said an officer. "She said that she was supposed to hand over the bag to a person in South Africa, whose identity she doesn't know."
AIU officers said drug smugglers are now using well-settled professionals, especially women, as drug carriers. Methamphetamine is a party drug used to induce euphoria for a longer time. The drug is smuggled both in and out of India.
"Methamphetamine can be sold for a margin in South Africa and hence, the demand is high," said another AIU officer.444444444444444444
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