INDIA: Zimbabwean woman jailed 10 years in drugs case; found carrying 8.5kgs of heroin

By Agencies

INDIA: A Zimbabwean woman was Wednesday sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment by a special court after being convicted for drugs possession.

Rosie Diamon was apprehended with drugs at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport two years ago.

The 40-year-old woman was found guilty under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance (NDPS) Act.

According to prosecutors, the Air Intelligence Unit at the Mumbai international airport intercepted Rosie Daimon upon her arrival in the city on February 13, 2022.

A search led to the recovery of 7,006 grams of heroin and 1,480 grams of white crystal granules, which is a combination of heroin and methamphetamine, the prosecution said.

The woman claimed her innocence, citing abject poverty due to her origin from a third-world nation. She said her cousin was a part of a Zimbabwean gang and had lured her with money.

The cousin passed on a bag to her, saying it contained medical equipment and asked her to carry it to India, the woman told the court.

“In such a case, the court will have to presume that the contraband’s possession was a conscious one,” the court said.

Referring to the evidence, the court said the woman was found in possession of commercial quantities of contraband methamphetamine and heroin.

The evidence presented by the prosecution witness is “trustworthy and reliable”, observed the court, holding the woman guilty and sentencing her to 10 years of imprisonment.