Venezuelan woman detained with satellite phone at Dehradun airport

A 27-year-old Venezuelan woman, presently working in the United States, has been detained with a satellite phone at Jolly Grant airport, here.

Speaking to ANI, Ram Singh Meena, Additional Director General of Police (ADG), Law and Order, said that the phone has not been used till now and the officials are probing whether keeping an unused satellite phone is a crime or not.

"This woman, from Venezuela, came to India on April 2. We recovered a satellite phone from her. She is now being probed by the army and Intelligence Bureau (IB) officers. However, as per the information, the satellite phone, in her possession, has not been used till now. We are trying to find out whether it is a crime to possess a satellite phone," he said.

According to Meena, this may be a case of negligence, as the woman, who came for a trip to India, was not aware of the fact that satellite phones, unlike the US, are banned in India.

"According to her, she did not know keeping a satellite phone in India is a crime. She has come from the US and it is not banned there," he said, adding, "I feel it is just a case of negligence as she was not aware of it.