Suspect arrested for bringing a stock of ornamental plants from Thailand

A Sri Lankan passenger who illegally brought a stock of live ornamental plants worth about two hundred thousand rupees into the country has been arrested by customs officials at Katunayake Airport. This individual was caught in the customs net yesterday (27) in the early hours of the morning, while attempting to exit the airport via the "Green Channel" used by passengers who have nothing to declare.

The person arrested is a 57-year-old businessman residing in the Kandy area. He had arrived in the island yesterday at around 12:30 AM on SriLankan Airlines flight UL-405 from Bangkok, Thailand. During the inspection of the suspect's luggage, customs discovered this stock of ornamental plants, meticulously wrapped in paper and cleverly concealed.

He did not possess a valid import license or a phytosanitary certificate required for bringing this stock of plants into Sri Lanka. Following a formal investigation by Katunayake Airport customs officials regarding the incident, the relevant stock of ornamental plants was confiscated. Subsequently, to minimize potential environmental damage if these plants were released into the local environment, customs officials have taken steps to hand over the plant stock to the Katunayake Plant Quarantine Institute for destruction.