Man Tears Passport to Cover Up Bangkok Travel, Caught at Mumbai Airport

A man was arrested at Mumbai’s apati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport Chhatr(CSMIA) for allegedly tearing out pages from his passport in an attempt to hide his visits to Bangkok from his family, a police official said on Wednesday, as per the report. Immigration authorities intercepted the man during routine checks early Monday and discovered that several pages in his passport had been deliberately removed, officials said.

According to a police official, Bhalerao had made four trips to Bangkok last year and most recently flew to Indonesia from Mumbai earlier this month. During questioning, he allegedly admitted to tearing pages from his passport in an effort to conceal his Bangkok visits from his family, the official stated, as per the report. He was subsequently taken to the Sahar police station in Mumbai's western suburbs and charged under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) and the Passport Act. Authorities have confirmed that further investigation into the case is ongoing.

A woman from Guinea was apprehended by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) officials at Mumbai airport with narcotics valued at approximately ₹21.78 crore, officials reported on Wednesday. Acting on specific intelligence, the DRI Mumbai Zonal Unit intercepted the passenger, who had arrived from Nairobi and was suspected of carrying illegal drugs. Upon inspection of her checked-in baggage, officers discovered three packets containing a white powdery substance.

Suspecting the substance to be a narcotic, officials tested it using an NDPS Field Test Kit, which confirmed the presence of cocaine. The total weight of the seized cocaine was found to be 2,178 grams. The confiscated drugs are estimated to be worth ₹21.78 crore in the international market.

"The said drug packets were seized and passenger was arrested under provisions of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act of 1985," the officials said. Further investigation is under progress, they said.