Citing ‘illegal custody', Delhi HC grants bail to Ethiopian national held from Delhi airport for narcotics smuggling in 2023
The Delhi High Court Tuesday granted bail to an Ethiopian national, who allegedly concealed narcotics by swallowing bottles containing pills, and held that he was kept in 'illegal custody' by the Customs department as he was not presented before a magistrate.
The accused, Habiob Bedru Omer, was apprehended at Indira Gandhi International Airport in May 2023 by a Customs officer based on 'suspicion/profiling'. It was revealed that Omer was concealing a narcotic substance inside his body, and on further enquiry, the applicant accepted that he had concealed some capsules in his body. Omer then voluntarily submitted his willingness to undergo the procedure for the removal of the secreted capsules/pellets from his stomach.
He was then taken to Safdarjung Hospital and during his stay at the hospital, three panchnamas were prepared, one on May 21, 2023, and two others the next day, after 75 capsules of contraband were allegedly recovered from him. He was discharged on May 25, 2023, and on the next day, the three plastic containers containing the 75 pills were found to contain methaqualone, weighing 960 grams, following which he was arrested on May 26, 2023. The samples tested positive for cocaine hydrochloride.
Justice Amit Sharma noted multiple issues with the arrest procedure. He noted that Omer was not presented before a magistrate before being taken to the hospital. Also, the local police were not notified of his transfer to Safdarjung Hospital, and no information was provided to his family members or the Ethiopian Embassy.
Also dismissing the Customs department's argument to the contrary, the court held that Omer was under the 'custody' of the department since the time of his interception on May 21, 2023, and was in 'continuous custody' until May 26, 2023.
'…in the opinion of this Court, such custody without any authority and without producing him before the concerned Magistrate or Special Court within 24 hours in accordance with law is completely illegal. Even if the applicant was under medication for the procedure being carried out, the same cannot be a ground to keep him in custody. Magistrates exercising power of remand or otherwise in respect of persons in hospital is not unheard of and well recognised procedure in law,' Justice Sharma reasoned and noted that his arrest stood vitiated.
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