A woman was arrested at Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport on Monday with cocaine worth Rs17crore.

Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) sources said the accused, Khiangte Lalthlamuani, 47, is from Meghalaya. Acting on a tip-off, the NCB searched her upon arrival. The team recovered 2.85kg cocaine from her handbag.

"Lalthlamuani can be called a professional drug carrier. She does this job all over the country," said a senior NCB officer.

Sources said Lalthlamuani was not co-operating with the investigation. The NCB is trying to find who she was to give the drug to.

Investigations revealed that the accused had arrived in the city from Lomé, the capital of Togo, in West Africa. She flew to Addis Ababa from Lome where she was given the drug at the airport.

The agency suspects that Lalthlamuani is part of a bigger racket that has roots in Mumbai and other cities. "Most of the drugs are coming in from African countries," said the officer.

This is the second time this year that a woman carrying drugs at the city airport has been arrested. On March 26, the Air Intelligence Unit arrested a woman identified as Vanessa De Kock, acting on a tip-off from NCB officials. De Kock was found with 4.9kg of methaqualone worth Rs 1.47 crore.