• On Monday, an Indian national who was allegedly attempting to smuggle a consignment of narcotics worth Sh20 million (Rs 44 crore) from Nairobi was intercepted at Kozhikode airport in Kerala, India.
• The 27-year-old was intercepted by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), carrying 3.5 kilos of cocaine and 1.3 kilos of heroin.
Kenyan security teams are investigating the source of narcotics being flown to India.
At least three Kenyans have been arrested with drugs valued at more than Sh30 million after landing in India in the last week alone. The drugs include cocaine and heroin.
Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin said all the reported cases are being investigated to establish the source of the narcotics.
On Monday, an Indian national who was allegedly attempting to smuggle a consignment of narcotics worth Sh20 million (Rs 44 crore) from Nairobi was intercepted at Kozhikode airport in Kerala, India.
The 27-year-old was intercepted by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), carrying 3.5 kilos of cocaine and 1.3 kilos of heroin.
A kilo of cocaine can fetch at least Sh5 million in Kenya.
The value varies depending on the country. Officials said Rs 44 crore is equivalent to Sh773 million in India.
The drugs were found hidden in shoes, jars and purses strapped under his luggage, the local media said.
The drugs were seized from a resident of Musafar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh, officials said.
A further probe has been launched on the matter as the suspect remains in custody.
This is the latest string of incidents to happen, putting officials at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on the spot.
They are all said to have originated in Nairobi.
Sources said the seizure is a warning Kenya is now a major transit route for narcotics probably destined for Europe and Asia.
Detectives said the latest trend of seizures of the narcotics locally point to a dangerous scenario that needs attention from authorities.
Last week the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence's (DRI) Mumbai and New Delhi units, in a joint operation, arrested two Kenyan women, including one from Vasai, for allegedly smuggling in nearly 1.7 kilos of cocaine worth around Sh11 million (Rs 10 crore) from Nairobi to Delhi airport.
The duo has been booked under the NDPS Act.
Based on a tip-off, DRI officials at Delhi airport intercepted the Kenyan when she landed on Tuesday August 22 morning and found the contraband concealed in her trolley bag.
During interrogation, she said she was a carrier and the cocaine was sent by another Kenyan, who was in touch with her on WhatsApp.
She said she was to catch a flight to Mumbai and hand over the contraband to a person at Evershine Nagar in Vasai.
She was promised $3,000 for the job.
In 2019, then European Union Ambassador to Kenya Simon Mordue said the Kenyan port of Mombasa accounted for 30 per cent of illegal heroin smuggled into the EU market.
Most of the heroin in the country originates from Afghanistan through the Indian Ocean while cocaine originates from South America.