The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has revealed a network involved in shipping etomidate to Southeast Asian countries under false labels. The accused were sending the anaesthetic drug, treated as a psychotropic substance in some nations, to buyers in Malaysia and Thailand through Mumbai airport. The drug was mislabelled and dispatched via courier services to avoid detection.
Three individuals have been identified in connection with the operation: Nikunj Gadhiya, Chetan Vardiya, and Bhautik Padmani. Gadhiya has been detained, while efforts are ongoing to locate the other two suspects. The accused allegedly operated separate companies but used a similar method to procure the drug in India and export it abroad by falsifying documents and mislabelling the product.
Investigators found that Gadhiya had sent around 50 kilograms of etomidate labelled as aloe vera powder to recipients in Malaysia. Padmani and Vardiya also exported significant quantities of the drug mislabelled as other substances to Southeast Asia. The detained accused admitted that the parcels contained etomidate intended for buyers in Southeast Asia.
The consignments were reportedly sold abroad for an estimated price of 4,000 to 5,000 US dollars per kilogram. Etomidate, not classified under India’s Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, is misused abroad in intoxicant mixtures known as “space oil.” The ATS has registered a case under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, and investigations are ongoing to trace other associates involved in the network.
