Malaysian Man Caught Smuggling A Live Human Embryo In His Suitcase At Mumbai Airport
He was carrying it in his luggage.
By Tamara Jayne — 21 Mar 2019, 06:29 PM
A Malaysian man was recently arrested for smuggling a live human embryo at the Mumbai airport last week, 16 March
BBC reported on Tuesday, 19 March, that Partiban Durai was found carrying the embryo in a specialised nitrogen-packed canister inside his luggage.
Durai admitted that this was not his first time smuggling embryos into the country
He claimed he had been transporting embryos to an IVF clinic in India 10 times in the past 18 months, Times of India reported.
He would arrive with the package in the morning then leave on an evening flight.
Durai added that he worked for a surrogacy agency based in Malaysia, that is run by an Indian man and his British wife.
Text messages between the clinic and agencies in Malaysia were reportedly found by authorities to back up Durai's claims
However, the clinic has since denied the allegations, saying that it was a set-up.
Dr Goral Gandhi, an embryologist who runs the clinic, said that the embryos were not for them.
Frozen embryos can be stored for several years under certain conditions
According to Times of India, authorities believe that transferring embryos into the wombs of Indian surrogates is a much cheaper process in India.
However, it is a requirement to have a legal permit from the Indian Council of Medical Research before transporting embryos into India.