Kolkata Court Rejects Bail for Nurse Accused in Global Drug Racket

KOLKATA: The Calcutta High Court denied the bail motion of a Mizoram nurse accused of involvement in an international drug trafficking case.

According to officials, the woman shipped a package from the Netherlands carrying a substantial quantity of illegal substances. Last year, the item was intercepted at the Foreign Post Office in Kolkata. Investigators think that people in the Netherlands and Kenya were keeping track of the package.

The nurse was detained on May 7, 2024, after officers discovered 2.1 kg of amphetamine stashed inside kitchen appliances. She later applied for bail, stating she had no idea what was inside the package or who had sent it. However, authorities alleged that photographs of the delivery were texted to her phone and then deleted. 

In a separate but connected case, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) arrested a postgraduate nursing student from Mizoram for allegedly being involved in a drug smuggling ring. According to officials, a parcel from the Netherlands was sent in her name at the Foreign Post Office on Kiran Shankar Ray Road in Kolkata earlier this month. The box was branded “essential medicines” and was scheduled to be sent to Aizawl.

Following a tip-off, NCB officers examined the shipment and discovered 2.175 kg of amphetamine tablets inside. Following this, officers went to Aizawl to conduct their probe.

The student was residing at Mizoram House when she was questioned by NCB officers after being summoned to Kolkata for further interrogation. She allegedly acknowledged during interrogation that she was in charge of trafficking the drugs in Mizoram and other states in the northeast. According to reports, she also disclosed ties to a global drug trafficking organization.

The investigation has not yet concluded.