The recent seizure of over 350 LSD blots smuggled in as a postal parcel here and the subsequent arrest of eight persons who were suspected to be part of a Darknet-based drug racket by the Kochi zonal unit of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) has alerted enforcement agencies to the increased threat posed by technology-driven drug smuggling and couriering drugs from abroad.
In the instant case, Telegram Messenger, a cloud-based, cross-platform instant messaging service, and cryptocurrency had emerged as major tools at the hands of the accused in getting drug delivered from Germany as a postal parcel. They reportedly followed links shared over Telegram leading them to the Darknet where the order was placed, while payments were made through cryptocurrency wallets.
The accused reportedly claimed to have procured drugs in a similar manner from abroad. The NCB managed to secure almost the entire lot of LSD blots except for a few either sold or consumed by the accused themselves, sources said.
The incident has also alerted the Excise department, which is not new to the modus operandi of drugs being smuggled from abroad as parcels. In 2022 alone, the department intercepted five such parcels hardly in as many months at the International Mail Centre (IMC) of the Postal department and postal appraisal office of the Customs department.
The parcels were from as diverse destinations as Poland, the United States, Netherlands, and Qatar. Among the seized drugs were 262 LSD blots, 222 grams of MDMA, and 9.88 grams of cocaine packed into numerous parcels.
“We have presented chargesheets in most of these cases. Since tracing back the transactions on Darknet is not easy, devices, including smartphones and laptops, seized from the accused mostly provide evidence though we are yet to receive the forensic examination reports in some of these cases,” said a senior Excise official.
Both the NCB and the Excise keep frequently interacting with courier firms as well by educating them on how to stay alert to suspicious parcels. Drugs are often couriered as toys and books. “Where the persons to whom the parcels are addressed insist on personally collecting the parcel from the courier company rather than wait for the delivery is a giveaway that the parcel may be having suspicious contents in which case the courtier firms immediately alert us,” said the official.
