(COLOMBO) – A group of six Indians trading in black market cigarettes and without valid visit visas was arrested at Katunayake on the outskirts of the Sri Lankan commercial capital of Colombo, police said on Thursday.
The group was rounded up at a safe house along with 50 cartons of imported cigarettes following a tip-off from suspicious local residents, police said.
They added that the Indians had overstayed their visit visas and were actively involved in the black market cigarette trade for a considerable period of time.
Police are now hunting for their local handlers who have apparently left the area.
The country’s international airport is also located in Katunayake.
