After 5 years in jail, four set free from drug smuggling case
The incident dates back to November 2020, when the four individuals, Soniya Rafiq Khan, Ejike Offor, Kenechukwu Nelson Uteh, and Hazel Donald Corriea, were arrested for allegedly trying to smuggle cocaine from Trinidad, a Caribbean island, into India in a FedEx parcel addressed to a person named 'Andrea Tellies' in Kharghar, according to the Mumbai zonal unit of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI).
Special Judge PP Jadhav on Friday ordered the release of the four individuals, who had been in custody since their arrest on November 18, 2020, and highlighted multiple gaps in the prosecution's case. Noting that none of the accused was present in the Air Cargo during the seizure, Judge Jadhav pointed out that the seizure panchnama does not bear the investigating officer's signature. 'Also, no person from the FedEx Courier Services has been examined by the prosecution as a witness.
The prosecution claimed that Khan allegedly collected the parcel using forged documents and was about to hand it over to her co-accused, Offor and Uteh, to which the court said that the evidence produced was insufficient and also noted that there was no evidence for Offor and Uteh approaching Khan for taking the parcel.
While acquitting the four individuals, the court said, 'The prosecution has failed to prove the seizure of contraband and there is no evidence for Khan visiting the FedEx Office to accept the delivery of the consignment.'
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