Man arrested with live human embryo in his suitcase

A Malaysian man has been arrested after he was caught with a live human embryo in his suitcase at Mumbai airport.

Indian authorities are investigating a possible smuggling ring after they found a canister containing the embryo concealed in his luggage on 16 March, the BBC reports.

“The man, who reportedly admitted this was not the first time he had smuggled embryos into India, then led officials to a high-end IVF clinic in the city,” the broadcaster says.

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It is illegal to import human embryos into India without a certificate from the Indian Council of Medical Research.

A representative from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, the agency investigating the alleged smuggling operation, told the High Court that several text messages found on the man’s phone suggested the clinic was the intended place of delivery, according to The Times of India.

The paper says the man told police he had made 10 such trips to the clinic in the last 18 months.

But a lawyer for Dr Goral Gandhi, who runs the clinic, told the court that his client “does not import embryos as part of her business” and claimed she was being set up by competitors.

The Indian Express reports that IVF experts believe Malaysian couples may be exporting their embryos for illegal surrogacy in India because of the country’s strict Islamic laws.